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MEDICAL  HERESIES: 


HISTORICALLY  CONSIDERED. 


A    SERIES    OF    CRITICAL    ESSAYS    ON    THE    ORIGIN    AND 


EVOLUTION  OF  SECTARIAN  MEDICINE, 


EMBRACING   A 


Special  Sketch  and  Review  of  Homoeopathy, 
PAST  AND  PRESENT. 

BY 

GONZALVO  C.  SMYTHE,  A.M.,  M.D., 

PE0FES80B    OF    THE    PRACTICE    OF    MEDICINE,    CENTRAL    COLLEGE    OF    PHYSICIANS  AND 
SURGEONS,  INDIANAPOLIS;  MEMBER  OF  AMERICAN  MEDICAL  ASSOCIATION,  &C. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

PRESLEY    BLAKISTOST, 

1012  WALNUT  STEEET. 
l88o. 


i ; 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1880,  by 

PRESLEY  BLAKISTON, 
the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington,  D.  C. 


Press  of  WM.  F.  FELL  &  CO., 

1220-1224  Sansom  St.,  Phila. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 


Ages  in  Medicine  ;  The  Mythological,  Dogmatic  or  Em-        page 
pirical  and  Rational ;  Origin  of  Medicine  ;  Its  Evo- 
lution ;  Primeval  Medicine  ;  Ancient  Egyptian  Civil- 
ization ;  Influence  of  Epidemics  upon  Primeval  Man       17-22 

CHAPTER  II. 

Egyptian  Mythology,  Isis,  Osiris,  Horus,  Thoth,  Apis, 
Esmion  and  Serapis;  Diseases  Attributed  to  the 
Anger  of  the  Gods  ;  Priests ;  Demonology  ;  Egyptian 
Mysteries  ;  Venesection  ;  Clysters  ;  Greek  Colonies ; 
yEsculapius ;  Chiron  the  Centaur ;  Machoan  and 
Podalirius ;  The  Asclepiadse ;  Pythagoras  and  his 
School;  Secret  Nostrums 23-30 

CHAPTER  III. 

The  Genealogy,  Writings  and  Opinions  of  Hippocrates...       31-34 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Dogmatic  School  of  Medicine  ;  Prominent  Characters 
in  this  School ;  School  at  Alexandria,  32  B.C.  ;  Hero- 
philus ;  Erasistratus ;  Dissection  of  the  Human 
Body  Legalized  for  the  First  Time  in  the  History  of 
the  World;  Empiric  School,  287  B.C.;  Pyrrho ; 
Philinus  ;  Serapion  ;  Doctrines  and  Influence  of  this 
School ;  Methodic  School ;  Asclepiades  ;  Stephanus  ; 
Marcus  Artorius ;  Themison ;  Principles  and  Influ- 
ence of  this  School 35-42 

CHAPTER  V. 

Claudius  Galen ;  Biography  ;  Education  ;  Distracted 
Condition  of  Medicine  ;  Opportunities  for  Distinc- 
tion; Revival  and  Revision  of  Dogmatism;  His 
Writings  and  Opinions;  The  Impression  They  left 
upon  the  Medical  World  ;  His  Cowardice 43-50 

iii 


IV  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Doctrines  and  Influence  of  the  Christian  Church  on  the  page 
Progress  of  Medicine  ;  Priestcraft;  Prayers;  Incan- 
tations; Holy  Waters,  Ointments,  etc.,  etc.  ;  Ignor- 
ance and  Superstition  ;  Reign  of  Justinian  ;  Destruc- 
tion of  the  School  at  Athens ;  The  Nestorians ; 
School  at  Edessa  ;  Baghdad  ;  Preservation  of  Medi- 
cine by  the  Arabians ;  Schools  in  Spain ;  Rhazes  ; 
Hali  Abbas  ;  Avicenna  ;  Albucasis  ;  Improvements 
Introduced  by  the  Arabians 51-57 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Progress  of  Medicine  in  the  West;  Destruction  of  Roman 
Empire ;  Ecclesiastics  ;  Oribasius ;  vEtius ;  Alex- 
ander of  Tralles  ;  Paulus  yEgineta ;  Attempted  Re- 
vival of  Letters  during  the  Reign  of  Charlemagne ; 
Theosophy  and  Astrology  ;  Schools  at  Monte  Cassino 
and  Salerno  ;  Cures  by  Prayer  ;  Revival  of  Practical 
Anatomy  by  Mondini,  1315  a.  d.  ;  Important  Events 
During  the  Century  ;  Cabalistic  Medicine  ;  Cornelius 
Agrippa ;  Jerome  Cardan ;  Paracelsus  ;  Chemical 
School  of  Medicine ;  Doctrines  of,  and  their  Influ- 
ence        58-68 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Rosicrucians  ;  Mystery  connected  with  the  Origin  of 
this  Sect ;  Their  Absurd  Pretensions  ;  The  Eclectic 
Conciliators  ;  Belief  in  Witchcraft ;  Transmutation 
of  Metals;  Demonology,  etc.;  Mathematical  School  ; 
Borelli ;  Principles  of  this  School ;  Bellini ;  Un- 
realized Expectations  of  this  School 69-72 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Brilliant  Progress  of  Surgery  ;  Evolution  of  Anatomy  ; 
Knowledge  of  the  Ancients  upon  this  Subject ;  Can- 
nibalism ;  Knowledge  Gained  by  Embalming ;  Pre- 
judices against  Dissections  by  the  Jews,  Greeks, 
Early  Christians,  etc.  ;  Roman  Laws  upon  the  Sub- 
ject ;  Rufus,  the  Ephesian ;  Galen  ;  Mondini's 
Work  on  Anatomy ;  Carpi ;  Silvius  ;  Michael  Ser- 
vetus  ;  Andrew  Vesalius ;  Harvey ;  Progress  of 
Medicine  and  the  Collateral  Sciences  during  the  re- 
mainder of  the  Century 73-82 

CHAPTER  X. 

Progress  of  Medicine  during  the  Close  of  the  Seventeenth 
Century  and  the  First  Half  of  the  Eighteenth  ;  New 


CONTENTS.  V 

Schools  Founded  upon  the  Improvements  in  Physi-        page 
ology  During  this  Period  ;  Expectant  School ;  Ernest 
Stahl ;  Principles  of  this  School;  Hoffmann's  Sys- 
tem ;  Boerhaave  ;  Cullen's  System  ;  The  Brunonian 
System;  The  Last  of  the  Dogmatic  Schools 83-89 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Concluding  Remarks  on  Ancient  Dogmatism  ;  Medicine 

and  Philosophy  ;  Materia  Medica  of  the  Ancients 90-95 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Homoeopathy  as  Taught  by  Hahnemann  ;  Biography  of 
Hahnemann ;  Similia  Similibus  Curantur ;  Trans- 
cendental Pathology  ;  Quotations  from  Organon  ; 
Spirit-like,  Dynamic  Pathology  ;  Dilutions,  Manufac- 
ture and  Strength  of;  Olfaction  ;  Single  Dose ;  Dis- 
ease Canceled  by  Removing  Totality  of  Symptoms ; 
Vital  Force,  Rude  and  Instinctive  ;  Efforts  of  Nature  * 
the  Disease  itself;  Local  Remedies  Denounced  ; 
Hahnemann's  Theory  of  Chronic  Diseases;  Three 
Miasms,  Syphilis,  Sycosis  andrPsora 96-123 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Homoeopathy  Continued  ;  Forces  of  Nature  ;  Opinion  of 
the  Ancients  upon  this  Subject ;  Unity  of  Force  ; 
Nature  of  the  vital  Forces ;  Sensation  and  Motion  ; 
Electric  Force ;  Impossibility  of  Diseased  Vital 
Force ;  Dynamic  Causes  of  Disease ;  Material 
Causes  ;  Hahnemann's  Theory  of  Psora  as  a  Cause  ; 
Allopathy,  Homoeopathy  and  Antipathy;  Law  of 
Similars  Based  upon  Symptoms  and  not  Pathology ; 
Claimed  as  a  Divine  Revelation ;  Explanation  of 
the  Modus  Operandi  of  Cure  under  this  Law 124-138 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Discussion  of  Homcepathy  Continued ;  Provings  ;  Diffi- 
culties Attending  this  Process  ;  Dynamic  Force  Ac- 
quired by  Dilution  and  Trituration  ;  Provings  of 
Calcarea  ;  Allen's  Encyclopaedia  of  Materia  Medica  ; 
Dynamization  ;  Hahnemann's  New  Chemical  Law.; 
Divisibility  of  Metals  ;  Mathematical  Calculations  in 
Regard  to  Dilutions ;  Modus  Operandi  of  Medicines  ; 
Effect  of  Medicine  upon  the  Temperature  of  the 
Human  Body  ;  Antipyretic  Treatment  of  Fevers 139-158 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Discussion  of  Homoeopathy  Continued  ;  Quotations  from  page 
Current  Homoeopathic  Literature  ;  Illinois  Homoeo- 
pathic Medical  Association ;  Refusal  to  Indorse 
Similia  Similibus  Curantur ;  Homoeopathic  Society 
of  New  York;  Resolutions  of  1878,  '79  and  '80; 
Discussions  and  Differences  of  Opinion  ;  Sherman's 
Milwaukee  Test  of  the  Thirtieth  Dilution;  Final 
Report  Thereon  ;  Internal  and  Avoidable  Obstacles 
to  Homoeopathy ;  Discussion  of  Homoeopathy  by  a 
Homoepath,  in  the  Homoeopathic  Times ;  Examples 
of  Homcepathic  Practice ;  Ludlam's  Case  of  Ovari- 
otomy ;  Homoeopathic  Chicanery  in  Connection  with 
Hospital  on  Ward's  Island;  Homoeopathy  a  Divine 
Truth  or  a  Huge  Lie 159-196 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Summary;  Similia;  Kidd's  Laws  of  Therapeutics  ;  Con- 
trarii  Contrariis ;  Galen's  Law;  Cases  from  Kidd's 
Practice ;  Totality  of  Symptoms  and  Pathological 
Lesions  ;  Similar  Diseases  Associated  in  the  Same 
Individual ;  Natural  Diseases  Essentially  Dissimilar ; 
Pathology  of  no  Use  in  Selecting  a  Remedy  ;  Drug- 
Disease  ;  Domain  of  Similia ;  Propositions,  Discus- 
sions and  Conclusions  ;  Chemical,  Mechanical  and 
Physical  Forces ;  Tonics  and  Restoratives ;  Meta- 
physical Discussions  on  Therapeutical  Laws  ;  Slow 
Advance  of  Homoeopathy  in  the  Old  World  ;  Inter- 
national Hahnemannian  Association 197-218 


PREFACE. 

It  is  expected  that  every  person  who  propose  to  in- 
flict a  new  book  upon  the  profession  should  be  able  to 
give  a  good  reason  therefor. 

My  object  in  producing  this  little  work  is* twofold  : 
First,  to  furnish  the  profession  a  condensed  history  of 
the  evolution  of  medicine,  or,  at  least,  so  much  of  it  as 
relates  to  the  rise,  progress  and  fall  of  the  various 
schools,  sects,  or  systems,  from  the  earliest  historical 
period  down  to  the  present.  This  I  have  done  in  as 
brief  terms  as  possible,  without  any  discussion  of  the 
contemporaneous  systems  of  philosophy  or  theology  with 
which  medicine  in  former  times  has  been  strangely  and 
inconsistently  commingled. 

I  have  also  avoided  as  much  as  possible  discussing 

the  materia  medica  of  the  ancients,  especially  as  applied 

to  the  treatment  of  special  diseases,  which  would  be  of 

interest  only  to  the  medical  antiquarian. 

vii 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

My  second  object  is  to  furnish  the  regular  profession 
with  some  much  needed  information  in  regard  to  homoeo- 
pathy. Few  busy  practitioners  have  the  time  or  inclina- 
tion to  investigate  the  claims  of  this  school,  and  although 
they  are  brought  in  contact  with  it  daily,  know  little  or 
nothing  of  its  real  principles. 

I  have  presented  the  principles  of  this  school  fairly, 
quoting  the  exact  words  of  its  founders,  at  the  expense 
of  some  repetition,  in  order  that  I  might  not  be  accused 
of  misrepresentation. 

The  discussion  of  these  principles  has  been  conducted 
from  a  scientific  standpoint,  and  without  ridicule,  thus 
showing  of  what  homoeopathy  consisted  originally ;  and 
by  quotations  from  the  current  literature  of  the  school, 
with  discussions  thereon,  showing  what  it  is  now. 

It  is  confidently  believed  that  the  condensed  informa- 
tion contained  in  this  little  book  will  not  be  altogether 
without  interest  to  the  profession. 

G.  C.  Smythe. 

Green  Castle,  Ind.,  November,  1880. 


MEDICAL    HERESIES 

HISTORICALLY  CONSIDERED. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Ages  in  Medicine — The  Mythological,  Dogmatic  or  Empirical, 
and  Rational — Origin  of  Medicine — Evolution — Primeval 
Medicine — Ancient  Egyptian  Civilization — Epidemics, 
Plagues,  Black  Death. 

In  writing  a  history  of  medicine  it  would  seem  philo- 
sophical to  divide  the  subject  into  three  periods  or  ages, 
to  be  denominated  respectively — 
I.  The  Mythological; 
II.  The  Dogmatic  or  Empirical ;  and, 

III.  The  Rational. 

The  Mythological  age  extends  from  the  infancy  of  the 
human  race  to  about  the  year  400  B.C.,  and  includes  what 
is  known  from  tradition  of  the  early  evolution  of  medi- 
cine, together  with  the  meagre  facts  gained  from  history 
during  this  interesting  epoch. 

The  history  of  medicine  really  begins  with  the  Dog- 
matic or  Empirical  age,  and  includes  that  portion  of 
the  time  between   the   Hippocratic   period   (400  B.C.) 
2  17 


18  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

and  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century,  A.D.,  or  the 
death  of  the  last  Dogmatic  system,  the  Brunonian. 

The  Rational  age  in  medicine  begins  where  dogmatism 
leaves  off;  viz.,  about  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century 
and  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth.  It  is  founded  upon 
the  ruins  of  the  ancient  dogmatic  schools,  together  with 
the  new  facts  discovered  about  this  time  by  the  rapid 
evolution  of  anatomy,  physiology,  pathology,  chemistry 
and  the  collateral  sciences. 

The  latter  two  ages  are  necessarily  more  or  less  blended, 
and  seem  to  overlap  each  other;  yet  a  distinct  line  of 
demarkation  can  be  discovered  by  the  careful  student; 
and,  notwithstanding  Hippocrates  is  said  to  have  been 
the  father  of  rational  medicine,  from  the  very  nature  of 
things  existing  at  that  time,  his  system  could  be  little 
better  than  a  rational  empiricism. 

It  is  not  my  intention  to  write  a  History  of  Medicine, 
but  simply  to  gather  so  much  from  the  general  history 
of  the  subject  in  a  condensed  form  as  relates  to  the  rise 
and  fall  of  the  different  schools,  sects  or  systems  of 
medicine  from  the  earliest  period  of  which  we  have  any 
knowledge,  down  to,  and  including,  some  of  the  more 
prominent  heresies  of  the  present  day. 

The  opinion  is  almost  unanimous  among  historians, 
upon  this  subject,  that  the  origin  of  medicine  can  be 
traced  to  the  ancient  Egyptian  civilization.  This  can 
be  only  partially  true.  The  art  of  treating  accidents,  in- 
juries and  diseases  must  have  been  brought  about  among  all 


EPIDEMICS,  PLAGUES.  19 

primeval  nations  by  the  slow  process  of  evolution.  This 
process  was  necessarily  slow,  and  must  have  extended 
over  an  immense  period  of  time  which  was  pregnant 
with  danger  and  disaster  to  the  race.  Whole  tribes  or 
nations  perished,  or  even  continents  must  have  been  de- 
populated by  epidemics,  plagues  and  pestilential  diseases 
during  this  long  period  when  the  race  was  struggling 
up  from  savagery  and  barbarism. 

What  could  primitive  man  have  done  to  stay  the 
ravages  of  such  an  epidemic  as  the  one  from  which  our 
Southern  States  have  recently  suffered ;  or  such  a  plague 
as  the  Black  Death,  which  during  the  fourteenth  century 
is  said  to  have  destroyed  in  China  13,000,000  of  the 
population,  and  in  the  other  Eastern  countries  24,000,- 
000  more?  The  loss  by  death  from  the  plague  in 
Europe  only  was  over  25,000,000.  A  plague  was 
prevalent  in  London  as  late  as  a.d.  1665,  where  it 
destroyed  in  the  latter  half  of  that  year  no  less  than 
76,000  persons.  Also  in  the  city  of  Toulon  as  late 
as  a.d.  1720,  where,  out  of  a  population  of  26,276 
souls,  20,000  were  attacked  and  16,000  perished. 
What,  I  ask,  could  primeval  man  do  under  Buch 
circumstances?  and  we  have  no  reason  to  believe  that 
he  was  exempt  from  such  calamities ;  on  the  contrary, 
judging  from  the  careless  manner  in  which  he  lived 
he  must  have  been  oftener  subjected  to  such  pestilences 
than  his  more  modern  successor.  We  find  the  remains 
of  slaughtered  animals  and  all  kinds  of  d6bris  capable 


20  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

of  preservation,  right  in  the  cave  where  he  dwelt,  and 
"kitchen  middings"  several  feet  deep  immediately  in 
front  of  the  door  of  his  habitation. 

According  to  the  recent  investigations  of  Professor 
Marsh,  this  continent  is  the  birthplace  of  the  horse  and 
the  monkey.  It  is  not  likely  that  the  means  of  subsist- 
ence were  ever  so  precarious  as  to  cause  extinction  by 
starvation  on  such  a  vast  continent  as  this,  but  it  is  far 
more  plausible  to  suppose  that  they  have  disappeared 
by  the  ravages  of  some  epidemic  disease. 

If  the  evidence  brought  to  light  by  archaeologists  is 
trustworthy,  this  continent  was  m  once  inhabited  by  a 
numerous  and  thrifty  race  of  people,  who  have  left 
behind  them  traces  of  civilization  greatly  superior  to 
that  of  the  inhabitants  found  here  by  its  European  dis- 
coverers. It  is  not  likely  that  this  superior  race  was 
conquered  and  annihilated  by  the  lazy,  good-for-nothing 
savages  who  succeeded  them.  It  is  much  more  reason- 
able to  conclude  that  they  perished  by  the  ravages  of 
plagues  and  epidemic  diseases  of  different  kinds  which 
afflicted  them  in  rapid  succession.  And  they,  having  no 
knowledge  of  sanitary  science,  would  be  unable  to  oppose 
any  obstacle  to  the  progress  of  such  calamities  after  the 
germs  were  once  scattered  in  their  midst. 

It  is  highly  probable  that  the  human  race  has  been 
struggling  against  such  influences  for  a  thousand  centu- 
ries; and  it  would  indeed  be  strange  if  some  knowledge 
of  agents  to  ameliorate  the  condition  of  the  afflicted 


ORIGIN   OF   THE   HEALING   ART.  21 

were  not  discovered.  Even  the  beasts  of  the  field, 
guided  by  their  sensations  alone,  would  soon  learn  to 
bathe  their  fevered  bodies  in  the  cooling  waters  of  a 
convenient  brook. 

It  is  altogether  probable  that  the  healing  art  is  co- 
existent with  the  race.  However  rude  their  practice  may 
have  been,  with  no  way  of  preserving  their  experiences 
excepting  by  tradition,  it  is  little  wonder  that  whole 
tribes  perished,  or  that  continents  were  depopulated.  It 
would  not  require  much  time  for  a  primeval  man  with 
a  fractured  ]eg  to  learn  that  a  perfect  state  of  rest  would 
cause  him  to  suffer  less  pain,  and  that  if  the  fracture 
was  steadied  with  a  stick  or  piece  of  bark,  tied  on  with 
rawhide,  he  could  move  about  with  more  comfort ;  and 
after  a  lapse  of  a  few  weeks  he  would  find  that  he  could 
dispense  with  his  rude  splint — in  fact,  that  his  wound 
had  recovered,  crooked  it  might  be,  and  perhaps  too 
short,  but  still  a  useful  limb.  This  experience  would 
not  be  lost.  He  would  also  learn  that  cold  water,  if  his 
limb  was  too  hot,  would  keep  it  cool ;  and  if  his  wound 
was  an  open  one,  that  keeping  it  moist  would  cause  it 
to  be  less  painful ;  and  hence,  he  wrould  naturally  apply 
something  to  retain  the  moisture,  if  it  was  nothing  but 
a  fig  leaf.  But  if  he  should  happen  to  apply  some  ano- 
dyne plant,  like  stramonium,  belladonna,  or  poppies,  he 
would  learn  something  more,  and  that  something  would 
be  treasured  up  as  a  precious  discovery,  for  the  benefit 
of  posterity.     Such  is  the  real  origin  of  the  healing  art ; 


22  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

it  is  not  a  gift  of  the  gods.  An  immense  period  must 
have  elapsed  while  the  human  family  was  emerging 
from  this  condition,  and  before  diseases  were  attributed 
to  the  anger  of  evil  spirits ;  for  this  would  necessarily 
signify  the  evolution  of  a  moral  sense,  at  least  the 
knowledge  of  good  and  evil. 


EGYPTIAN  MYTHOLOGY.  23 


CHAPTER  II. 

Egyptian  Mythology — Isis,  Osiris,  Horus,  Thoth,  Apis,  Es- 
mion,  Serapis — Disease  Attributed  to  the  Anger  of  the  Gods — 
Priests  — Demonology — Egyptian  Mysteries  —  Venesection — 
Clysters — Greek  Colonies — JEsculapius — Chiron  the  Centaur 
— Machoan  —  Podalirius  —  The  Asclepiadaz  —  Pythagoras 
and  his  School — Secret  Nostrums. 

The  ancient  Egyptians  attributed  the  diseases  with 
which  they  were  afflicted  to  the  anger  of  their  gods. 
Among  their  principal  deities  might  be  mentioned  Isis, 
sister  and  wife  of  Osiris ;  her  son  Horus,  whose  life  she 
miraculously  restored,  and  who  is  the  same  as  the  Apollo 
of  the  Greeks ;  Thoth,  the  same  as  Hermes  of  the 
Greeks ;  also  Apis,  Esmion,  Serapis,  and  many  others. 

Serapis  was  worshiped  as  a  medical  divinity  by  both 
Greeks  and  Egyptians,  as  late  as  the  time  of  Alexander 
the  Great.  The  origin  of  medicine  is  attributed  by 
different  authorities  to  several  of  these  deities.  Horus 
is  said  to  have  received  his  knowledge  of  diseases  and 
their  antidotes  from  his  mother  Isis,  and  he  is  regarded 
as  the  inventor  of  the  art  by  some.  Yet  Apis  is  regarded 
by  equally  as  good  authority  as  the  deity  to  whom  this 
honor  is  due ;  and  there  are  still  others  who  claim  that 
Thoth  is  the  real  inventor  of  all  the  arts  and  sciences, 
including  medicine.  Of  course,  at  this  late  date  it 
matters  little  to  us,  and  less  to  the  gods,  to  whom  we 


24  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

ascribe  this  doubtful  honor.  These  gods  were  all  of 
human  origin,  but  had  been  deified  by  a  grateful  people, 
for  supposed  benefits  conferred.  When  the  gods  conde- 
scended to  practice  medicine  it  had  to  be  done  by  proxy, 
and  this  created  a  necessity  for  middle-men,  or  a  priest- 
hood, as  is  too  often  the  case  with  the  more  modern  gods. 
All  diseases  were  regarded  as  caused  by  the  displeasure 
of  the  gods,  and  of  course,  according  to  that  view  of 
their  pathology,  they  could  be  cured  in  no  other  way 
than  by  appeasing  this  displeasure,  and  no  other  means 
could  be  employed  by  the  multitude  in  order  to  approach 
these  gods,  than  through  the  medium  of  the  priests  who 
administered  in  the  temples.  The  sick  were  bewildered 
with  imposing  rites  and  ceremonies  which  were  as  sense- 
less and  unscientific  as  the  beating  of  the  tom-tom  and 
the  frightful  grimaces  made  by  the  great  medicine-man 
of  the  North  American  Indians.  If  any  medicines  were 
used,  their  names  as  well  as  their  virtues,  if  they  had 
any,  were  carefully  concealed.  Their  entire  practice 
consisted  in  a  miscellaneous  conglomeration  of  absurdi- 
ties, of  which  the  following  is  a  good  example :  They 
believed  there  were  thirty-six  demons  or  gods  of  the  air, 
who  had  divided  the  human  body  among  themselves, 
into  that  many  parts,  and  that  by  invoking  the  god  who 
presided  over  the  particular  part  affected  the  disease 
would  be  relieved. 

The  sum  total  of  all  human  knowledge,  including 
what  was  known  of  medicine  and  the  collateral  sciences, 


EGYPTIAN  MYSTERIES.  25 

was  supposed  to  be  communicated  to  those  who  were 
initiated  into  the  secrets  of  the  ancient  Egyptian  myste- 
ries.    This  knowledge  was  carefully  concealed  from  the 
vulgar,  and   those  who  were  initiated  were  bound  to 
secrecy  by  blood-curdling   oaths,  and   required   to   go 
through  with  the  most  extravagant  and  absurd  forms 
and  ceremonies  previous  to  and  during  their  initiation, 
sufficient  to  eclipse  by  far  any  of  the  modern  institu- 
tions  of    that   kind,   some   of    which   are    sufficiently 
absurd,  as  many  of  my  readers  well  know.      They  used 
venesection,   cathartics,   emetics    and    clysters.      They 
claimed  to  have  been  taught  venesection  by  the  hippo- 
potamus, which,  it  is  said,  performed  this  operation  upon 
itself  by  striking  its  leg  against  a  sharp  reed  and  opening 
a  vein  in  this  way,  and  after  the  blood  had  flowed  as 
long  as  it  thought  proper  filled  the  wound  with  mud. 
The  ancient  hippopotamus  might  have  amused  himself 
in  this  dangerous  way,  but  I  have  no  doubt  that  his 
modern  successor  has  learned  more  sense.     They  also 
claim  to  have  learned  the  use  of  clysters  from  their 
sacred  bird,  Ibis,  which  is  said  to  have  administered 
them  to  itself  with  its  bill.   So  much  for  ancient  Egypt- 
ian medicine.     Nothing  has  been  lost  to  the  science  by 
our  want  of  familiarity  with  it. 

Ancient  Greece  was  largely  colonized  by  the  Egypt- 
ians. These  colonists  brought  their  deities  and  their 
worship  along  with  them,  and  consequently  the  myth- 
ology of  the  Greeks  was  largely  borrowed  from  the 


26  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

Egyptians ;  and  especially  was  this  the  case  with  medical 
divinities.  But  the  Greeks  were  a  restless,  warlike 
people,  and  soon  developed  a  propensity  for  manufactur- 
ing gods  that  fairly  eclipsed  all  previous  efforts  in  that 
line,  one  of  their  finest  specimens  being  iEsculapius;  and 
as  he  was  their  most  illustrious  god  in  medicine,  it  will 
be  well  to  look  into  his  history  somewhat.  He  is  repre- 
sented as  being  the  son  of  Apollo  and  Coronis.  He  was 
a  student  of  Chiron  the  centaur,  who,  if  I  am  correctly 
informed,  established  the  first  medical  college  mentioned 
in  history,  in  a  cave  or  grotto  at  the  foot  of  Mount 
Pelion,  where  he  taught  medicine,  music,  botany  and 
chirurgery.  Efforts  have  been  made  by  some  etymolo- 
gists to  derive  the  latter  word  from  his  name.  Some  of 
the  most  celebrated  names  of  this  period  appear  among 
those  who  were  numbered  as  his  students.  But  as  we 
are  concerned  only  with  those  who  are  most  illustrious 
in  medicine,  we  shall  confine  our  attention  to  ^Esculapius 
and  his  two  sons,  Machoan  and  Podalirius.  Chiron 
lived  to  a  great  age,  and  frequently  instructed  both  father 
and  son,  as  in  the  above  case.  He  was  accidentally 
killed  by  a  poisoned  arrow,  shot  at  another  person  by 
young  Hercules,  who  was  also  a  student  of  his,  and  who 
is  reputed  as  having  had  an  uncontrollable  temper.  I 
mention  this  fact  in  order  to  show  that  the  antidote  to 
the  poison  the  ancient  Greeks  were  using  on  their 
arrows  was  unknown,  for  the  wound  itself  was  slight, 


^SCULAPIUS   AND   HIS  SONS.  27 

being  situated  near  the  knee,  and  would  probably  not 
have  produced  death  had  it  not  been  poisoned. 

JEsculapius  distinguished  himself  above  all  others 
as  surgeon-in-chief  of  the  expedition  of  Argonauts 
in  search  of  the  golden  fleece,  and  his  fame  has  been 
celebrated  in  poetry,  more  as  a  surgeon  than  as  a  physi- 
cian ;  in  fact,  he  evidently  knew  very  little  about  the 
administration  of  drugs  as  curative  agents.  He  is 
reported  to  have  raised  the  dead,  but  with  as  little  truth, 
perhaps,  as  the  same  report  in  regard  to  the  more  mod- 
ern gods.  He  used  songs,  dances,  incantations,  amulets, 
etc.,  for  the  cure  of  disease.  One  of  his  principal 
medicines  appears  to  have  been  a  mixture  of  wine,  meal 
and  scraped  cheese  made  from  goat's  milk.  His  skill 
in  medicine  has  been  greatly  over-estimated.  He  was 
not  deified  until  after  the  time  of  Homer ;  at  least,  there 
is  nothing  in  Homer  that  indicates  that  such  was  the 
case.  Another  account  places  his  deification  about  fifty 
years  before  the  siege  of  Troy,  which  is  supposed  to  have 
been  about  1184  B.C.  iEsculapius  was  destroyed  by  a 
thunderbolt  from  Jupiter,  at  the  special  request  of  Pluto, 
because  he  was  interfering  with  the  peopling  of  the 
latter's  empire.  Apollo  revenged  the  death  of  his  son 
by  destroying  the  Cyclops  who  forged  the  bolt.  So  it 
will  be  observed  that  the  gods  do  not  always  constitute 
a  happy  family;  a  very  good  argument  against  baviflg 
too  many. 

Machoan  and  Podalirius,  the  two  sons  of  iEsculapius, 


28  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

were  at  the  siege  of  Troy,  and  greatly  distinguished 
themselves  as  surgeons  and  physicians.  Medical  knowl- 
edge was  retained  as  a  secret  in  this  family,  and  trans- 
mitted  from  father  to  son,  until  the  time  of  Hippocrates. 
His  descendants  formed  a  priesthood  called  the  Ascle- 
piadae,  who  administered  in  the  temples  which  were 
erected  in  the  principal  cities  to  commemorate  his  wor- 
ship, much  after  the  manner  of  the  Egyptians.  These 
rites  and  ceremonies  seem  rather  silly  and  unscientific  to 
modern  physicians,  but  we  must  remember  that  they 
were  not  possessed  of  as  valuable  a  materia  medica  as 
we  are,  and  in  the  absence  of  such  they  had  to  make  up 
the  deficiency  in  pomp  and  show;  and  we  ought  to 
remember  that  this  very  circumstance  contributed  much 
in  making  a  favorable  mental  impression,  a  thing  of 
real  value  in  the  treatment  of  certain  forms  of  disease, 
which  I  shall  have  occasion  to  demonstrate  before  closing 
this  essay,  in  treating  of  another  branch  of  this  subject. 
During  the  sixth  century  B.C.,  Pythagoras,  after  ex- 
tensive travels  in  foreign  countries,  during  which  he  is 
said  to  have  learned  all  there  was  of  human  knowledge 
at  that  day  and  age  of  the  world,  returned  and  settled 
at  Crotonia,  where  he  established  a  school  of  philosophy 
and  medicine;  and  owing  to  his  venerable  appearance 
and  burning  eloquence  he  was  regarded  as  a  messenger 
dfe-ect  from  the  gods — a  pious  fraud  which  he  encouraged. 
He  soon  had  numerous  disciples  and  followers,  which 
included  some   of  the   most  illustrious  names   among 


THE  SCHOOL  OF  PYTHAGORAS.  29 

the  ancient  Grecian  philosophers,  such  as  Empedocles, 
Democritus,  Anaxagoras,  and  others.  Through  the 
teachings  of  these  men  medicine  and  philosophy  were 
connected  and  taught  conjointly,  but  their  practice  was 
almost  as  superstitious  as  that  of  the  priests  in  the  tem- 
ples ;  in  fact,  Pythagoras  is  supposed  to  have  borrowed 
his  philosophy  largely  from  the  Egyptians,  where  he  is 
known  to  have  been  circumcised  and  initiated  into  the 
ancient  mysteries.  His  knowledge  of  the  power  of  drugs 
must  have  been  very  vague  and  indefinite.  He  regarded 
the  cabbage  as  a  universal  remedy  for  all  diseases,  when, 
in  fact,  it  is  almost  worthless,  even  as  an  article  of  diet 
in  health,  and  positively  injurious  in  nearly  all  forms  of 
disease  excepting  those  based  on  a  scorbutic  diathesis, 
and  even  in  these  greatly  inferior  to  many  plants. 

Medicine,  philosophy  and  religion  were  strangely  and 
inconsistently  commingled  for  centuries  after  the  time 
of  Pythagoras. 

The  Pythagoreans  were  communists,  and  their  prac- 
tices soon  became  obnoxious  to  the  people  who  prosecuted 
them,  and  about  500  B.C.  their  society  was  disbanded 
and  the  disciples  of  Pythagoras  were  scattered  through- 
out the  cities  of  Greece,  where  they  divulged  the  secrets 
of  his  philosophy  and  his  practices.  Had  it  not  been 
for  this  circumstance  the  world  would  never  have 
known  anything  about  his  system  of  philosophy,  for 
he  left  no  writings  behind  him. 

This  disclosure  of  the  Pythagorean  system  and  its 


30  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

propagation  among  the  people  soon  built  up  a  formidable 
rivalry  between  his  disciples  and  the  Asclepiadse,  who 
still  practiced  and  taught  medicine  in  the  temples,  which 
induced  them  to  disclose  the  secrets  of  their  system; 
which  brings  us  down,  in  the  course  of  time,  to  the 
period  of  Hippocrates.  It  is  also  a  fact  that  ought  not 
to  escape  our  notice,  that  secret  nostrums  were  sold  in 
the  principal  cities  of  Greece  at  least  five  hundred 
years  before  the  Christian  era;  and  still  the  patent- 
medicine-man  flourishes. 


HIPPOCRATES.  31 

CHAPTER  III. 

Hippocrates — Genealogy— Writings  of,  and  Opinions. 

The  history  of  Dogmatic  or  Empirical  medicine,  as 
transmitted  to  us  in  a  direct  line,  begins  with  Hippo- 
crates and  his  followers.  All  our  information  prior  to 
this  date  partakes  largely  of  the  prehistoric  or  mytho- 
logical. 

Hippocrates  was  born  on  the  island  of  Cos,  near  the 
beginning  of  the  80th  Olympiad,  and  consequently  was 
in  the  prime  of  life  about  the  year  400  B.C.  He  was  a 
lineal  descendant,  seventeen  generations  removed,  of 
JEsculapius,  on  the  paternal  side  of  the  house,  and  on 
the  maternal  side  he  traced  his  ancestry  to  Hercules; 
a  genealogy  sufficiently  ancient  and  aristocratic  to  suit 
the  most  fastidious.  He  is  the  first  of  the  ancients  who 
left  us  any  considerable  amount  of  literature  on  the  sub- 
ject of  medicine.  He  is  the  reputed  author  of  seventeen 
books  or  short  treatises  on  various  subjects  connected 
with  medicine,  some  of  which  are  genuine,  and  some  of 
which  are  known  to  be  apochryphal. 

There  appears  to  have  been  a  kind  of  mania  for 
writing  apochryphal  books,  which  originated  about  this 
time  and  continued  for  several  centuries.  The  authors 
of  some  of  them  imagined  themselves  to  be  inspired, 
but  they  were  evidently  inflated  only.     Be  this  as  it 


32  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

may,  the  works  attributed  to  Hippocrates  perhaps  give 
us  a  very  accurate  view  of  medicine  as  it  existed  at  that 
time.  Whether  or  not  they  were  all  the  result  of  his 
handiwork,  several  of  them  are  known  to  be  genuine. 

It  has  been  said  that  if  Shakespeare's  writings  were 
subtracted  from  the  English  language  and  literature 
very  little  would  remain.  The  truth  of  this  state- 
ment will  be  readily  conceded  by  persons  familiar  with 
the  subject,  for  Shakespeareanisms  are  found  permeating 
our  literature  everywhere. 

So  much  could  not  be  said  of  the  writings  of 
Hippocrates  in  reference  to  medicine,  at  this  day  and 
age  of  the  world,  but  it  could  have  been  said  for  several 
centuries  after  his  death,  without  any  violation  of  the 
truth. 

Hippocrates  flourished  when  nothing  or  next  to  noth- 
ing was  known  of  anatomy,  physiology,  or  pathology. 
Chemistry  was  yet  an  unborn  science.  Not  a  single 
trace  of  chemistry  as  applied  to  pharmacy  can  be  found 
previous  to  or  during  the  time  in  which  Hippocrates 
lived.  Little  was  known  of  Botany;  especially  of  the 
medicinal  properties  of  plants. 

We  are  struck  with  wonder  and  admiration  for  the 
man  who  could  so  impress  the  coming  ages,  with  such  a 
small  capital  to  begin  with,  in  the  shape  of  collateral 
sciences,  as  he  possessed.  He  was  the  first  who  attempted 
to  separate  medicine  from  philosophy  and  start  it  in 
business  for  itself,  and  is  justly  entitled  to  be  called  the 


OPINIONS   OF   HIPPOCRATES.  33 

"father  of  medicine."  He  recognized  a  certain  force 
which  he  called  Nature,  which  he  regarded  as  the  "first 
of  all  physicians"  It  appears  that  he  relied  greatly  on 
this  force  in  the  cure  of  disease,  and  especially  if  he  did 
not  see  his  way  clearly ;  a  practice  which  ought  to  be 
imitated  by  the  profession  of  to-day  much  oftener  than 
it  is.  He  attributed  a  real  intelligence  to  this  force. 
He  says,  "  Nature  is  sufficient  of  itself  for  every  animal. 
She  performs  everything  that  is  necessary  to  them  with- 
out any  instruction  how  to  do  it.  She  distributes  the 
blood,  spirits  and  heat  through  all  parts  of  the  body,  by 
which  means  it  receives  life  and  sensation,  nourishment, 
preservation  and  growth."  He  finally  resolves  this 
force  into  heat,  which  he  says  is  immortal.  Not  a  bad 
guess  for  a  man  to  make  twenty-three  centuries  ago,  who 
was  not  acquainted  with  the  fact,  as  now  demonstrated, 
that  force  is  as  eternal  and  persistent  as  matter  itself! 
His  pathology  was  altogether  humoral.  He  enumerated 
four  humors — blood,  phlegm,  yellow  bile,  and  black 
bile.  He  regarded  imprudence  in  diet  as  a  frequent 
source  of  disease.  He  treats  of  diet  extensively  in  his 
writings.  He  also  considered  bad  air  as  a  prolific  source 
of  disease.  He  noted  the  direction  of  the  wind  and  the 
irregularity  of  the  seasons,  the  rising  and  setting  of  the 
stars,  the  solstices  and  equinoxes,  and  observed  that 
these  influences  had  a  profound  impression  on  certain 
diseases.  Right  here  is  a  vast  field  for  observation, 
which  is  of  untold  importance,  and  which  has  not  been 

3 

•      LiUzlOS  COLLEGE  LIEKARY 


34  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

sufficiently  explored  until  this  day.  There  is  less  known 
of  the  meteorology  of  diseases  than  almost  any  field  in 
the  sciences.  The  suggestions  made  by  him  on  this 
subject  seem  to  have  gone  unheeded  for  ages  after  his 
death.  I  have  every  reason  to  believe  that  had  he  been 
possessed  of  the  modern  appliances  for  taking  observa- 
tions which  we  have  had  so  long,  he  would  have 
laid  the  foundations  for  meteorological  observations  in 
medicine,  which  would  have  borne  fruit  of  great  value. 
Some  of  Hippocrates'  divisions  of  diseases  have  scarcely 
been  modified,  and  words  spoken  by  physicians  daily,  in 
the  present  age,  are  found  in  his  writings,  with  the  same 
meanings  as  at  present ;  such  as  acute  and  chronic ;  epi- 
demic, endemic  and  sporadic]  malignant  and  benign, 
crisis,  and  so  on.  In  prognosis  he  had  superior  tact, 
making  some  observations  that  have  never  been  im- 
proved  upon.  His  description  of  the  countenance  just 
before  death  takes  place  is  so  true  and  vivid  that  it  has 
borne  the  name  of  the  Hippocratic  countenance  until 
this  day.  His  theory  of  disease  was  based  on  the  four 
elements  of  earth, fire,  air,  and  water;  and  the  four 
humors  already  mentioned.  He  believed  that  some  de- 
rangement of  these  elements  and  humors  constituted  the 
essence  of  diseases,  and  that  the  principle  he  called 
Nature  prepared  them  for  expulsion  from  the  body  by  a 
process  he  called  coction,  and  that  they  were  expelled  by 


a  crisis. 


THE   DOGMATIC   SCHOOL.  35 


CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Dogmatic  School  of  Medicine— Prominent  Characters  in 
the  School — School  at  Alexandria,  320  b.  c. — Herophilus — 
Erasistratus — Dissections  of  Human  Bo  Hes  Legalized  for  the, 
First  Time  in  the  History  of  the  World — Empiric  School, 
287  years  b.  c. — Pyrrho — Philinus — Serapion — Doctrines 
and  Influence  of  this  School — Methodic  School — Asclepiades 
— Stephanies — Marcus  Artorius — Themison — Principles  and 
Influence  of  this  School — Thessalus  Trallianus  —Celsus — 
Hufus  the  Ephesian — Atheneus — Pneumatic  Sect  or  School — 
E2nsynthetic  or  Eclectic  School. 

It  was  the  elaboration  and  propagation  of  the  princi- 
ples contained  in  the  platform  of  Hippocrates  that  led  to 
the  foundation  of  the 

DOGMATIC   SCHOOL 

of  Medicine  by  his  disciples  and  successors. 

Prominent  mention  might  be  made,  in  this  connection, 
of  Thessalus,  Draco,  Polybius,Theophrastus,  Praxagoras, 
Plato  and  Aristotle.  These  sages  all  contributed  toward 
enriching  the  general  stock  of  knowledge  in  anatomy 
and  physiology,  but  they  soon  abandoned  the  path 
marked  out  to  guide  investigations  by  the  illustrious 
father  of  medicine,  and  the  art  continued  to  be  influenced 
by  the  absurd  systems  of  philosophy  of  the  age,  so  that 
little  real  progress  was"  made  until  the  foundation  of  the 
celebrated  school  of  Alexandria,  about  320  B.  c.    Under 


36  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

the  patronage  of  the  Ptolemies  this  school  became  the 
principal  seat  of  learning  in  the  world  at  that  time. 
Letters,  Arts  and  Sciences  were  protected  and  encouraged, 
and  the  most  learned  men  of  the  age  were  numbered 
among  its  teachers. 

This  school  exerted  a  controlling  influence  for  centu- 
ries, and  is  felt  even  at  the  present  day  in  medicine,  and 
especially  in  anatomy,  for  some  of  the  names  given  to 
certain  parts  of  the  body  are  still  retained.  A  certain 
portion  of  the  human  anatomy  will  always,  perhaps,  bear 
the  name  of  torcular  Herophili,  a  term  derived  from  the 
name  of  one  of  the  professors  of  anatomy,  Herophilus. 

At  this  institution  the  dissection  of  human  bodies  was 
legalized,  for  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  world, 
and  the  two  most  illustrious  names  in  connection  there- 
with are  Erasistratus  and  Herophilus,  who  were  contem- 
poraries. The  latter  is  said  to  have  dissected  seven 
hundred  human  bodies.  Both  were  said  to  have  opened 
the  bodies  of  criminals  while  they  were  yet  alive. 
These  statements  are  both,  probably,  greatly  magnified, 
and  perhaps  had  their  origin  through  the  popular  pre- 
judice that  must  have  existed  against  practical  anatomy 
at  that  time. 

Erasistratus  modified  the  practice  of  medicine  very 
much,  stripping  it  of  many  of  its  terrors.  He  opposed 
venesection,  drastic  cathartics,  irritating  clysters,  and  so 
on.  He  was  also  opposed  to  what  the  moderns  call 
"  shot-gun"  prescriptions,  of  which  there  were  many  in 


THE   EMPIRIC   SCHOOL.  37 

existence  at  that  time,  some  of  which  contained  as  many 
as  fifty  or  sixty  ingredients. 

Herophilus  made  several  additions  to  the  then  existing 
knowledge  of  the  pulse  ;  a  subject  which  had  heretofore 
been  much  neglected. 

The  Dogmatic  school  continued  to  flourish  without 
serious  opposition  until  about  the  year  287  B.C.,  when 
there  arose  a  formidable  rival,  which  is  known  by  the 
name  of  the 

EMPIRIC  SCHOOL. 

The  spread  of  the  peculiar  skeptical  doctrines  of  Pyrrho, 
in  philosophy,  perhaps  suggested  to  Philinus  the  foun- 
dation of  this  school,  but  although  he  was  the  real 
founder,  it  owed  its  success  greatly  to  Serapion,  one  of 
his  successors  and  disciples. 

It  is  a  remarkable  circumstance  in  the  history  of  medi- 
cine, that  a  sect  which  became  so  numerous,  extending 
over  a  period  of  several  centuries,  and  exerted  such 
a  powerful  influence,  which  is  not  now  nor  ever  will 
be  obliterated,  should  leave  us  none  of  their  writings. 
Many  distinguished  names  are  mentioned  among  the  dis- 
ciples of  this  system,  and  their  writings  were  numerous 
and  copious,  yet  our  entire  knowledge  of  them  is  gained 
by  quotations  from  their  works  by  their  adversaries, 
who  so  quoted  them  for  the  purpose  of  refutation. 
Their  own  testimony  in  favor  of  their  method  of  doing 
business  is  entirely  lost  to  us,  only  as  transmitted  by  their 
opponents  in   the   aforesaid  garbled  manner,  and  our 


38  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

opinion  of  them  is  necessarily  made  up  from  ex  parte 
testimony.  Whether  we  are  able  to  do  them  justice  at 
this  late  day,  upon  such  evidence,  is  a  doubtful  question. 

They  assailed  the  doctrines  of  the  Dogmatic  school  with 
great  fury,  and  abused  Hippocrates,  although  they  con- 
tinued to  use  his  medicines.  They  rejected  all  occult 
causes  of  disease,  and  based  their  system  entirely  on  ob- 
servation and  experience  gained  through  the  senses. 
These  sources  of  information  are  best  arranged  under 
three  heads:  1st,  personal  observation;  2d,  the  study  of 
the  recorded  observations  of  others ;  3d,  the  logical  con- 
clusions drawn  from  a  study  and  comparison  of  both  the 
preceding.  It  will  be  readily  seen  that  here  are  the 
germs  of  an  inductive  philosophy  which  would  have  led 
to  important  discoveries  if  its  foundations  had  been 
broadened  and  deepened  sufficiently. 

The  Dogmatic  school  accused  the  Empirics  of  neglect- 
ing the  study  of  anatomy  and  physiology.  This  accusa- 
tion must  be  accepted  with  some  degree  of  allowance, 
for  it  is  improbable  that  a  system  founded  on  observa- 
tion exclusively  would  neglect  two  such  important  ad- 
juncts. Yet  there  must  be  some  grounds  for  the  accu- 
sation, for  it  is  a  historical  fact  that  no  new  discoveries 
were  announced  in  anatomy  from  the  school  at  Alexan- 
dria, after  it  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Empirics,  and 
it  is  quite  probable  that  the  dissection  of  human  bodies 
was  soon  afterward  abolished. 

This  school  disseminated  its  doctrines  very  rapidly, 


THE   METHODIC   SCHOOL.  39 

and  soon  divided  the  honors  of  the  profession  with  the 
Dogmatic,  which  gradually  declined  until  the  latter  part 
of  the  second  century  of  the  Christian  era,  when  it  was 
revived  by  Galen. 

The  Empirics  regarded  the  entire  doctrines  upon 
which  the  Dogmatic  school  was  founded,  including  the 
elements,  humors,  coction,  crisis,  occult  causes,  essence  of 
disease,  and  the  famous  therapeutic  axiom  that  diseases 
must  be  cured  by  contraries,  as  false  or  hypothetical  and 
unnecessary.  This  school  enriched  the  materia  medica 
somewhat,  and  by  their  careful  and  painstaking  manner 
of  making  observations  have  not  failed  to  impress  sub- 
sequent ages. 

But  in  the  meantime  another  sect  had  arisen,  which 
was  known  by  the  name  of  the 

METHODIC  SCHOOL. 

The  platform  of  principles  upon  which  this  school 
was  founded  was  furnished  by  Asclepiades  who  was 
born  in  Bithynia  about  96  B.C.  He  located  in  Rome, 
where  he  became  famous  as  a  practitioner.  He  succeeded 
in  establishing  himself  firmly  in  that  city,  by  adopting 
a  course  that  has  been  successfully  imitated  by  modern 
quackery,  namely,  by  flattering  the  whims  and  humoring 
the  caprices  of  his  patients,  until  nature  effected  a  cure 
of  their  diseases.  He  allied  himself  with  the  nobility, 
and  was  the  friend  and  companion  of  Cicero.  He 
entertained  rather  peculiar  views  of  anatomy  and  physi- 
ology, and  it  is  somewhat  mysterious  how  or  where  he 


40  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

found  such  absurd  notions.  He  believed  the  body  was 
filled  with  invisible  pores,  and  that  corpuscles  were  con- 
tinually passing  through  these  pores.  He  thought 
hunger  was  caused  by  the  relaxation  of  the  larger  pores, 
and  thirst  by  the  relaxation  of  the  smaller.  He  was  of 
the  opinion  that  digestion  was  an  unnecessary  function  ; 
that  the  food  passed  directly  into  the  blood,  where 
it  was  comminuted  and  attenuated,  until  it  was  re- 
duced sufficiently  to  pass  through  the  pores,  before  it 
could  be  appropriated  as  nourishment.  Of  course,  his 
pathology  was  based  on  his  physiology,  and  when  a 
person  was  sick  he  simply  had  trouble  with  his  cor- 
puscles, or  his  pores.  Sometimes  the  corpuscles  were  too 
large  for  the  pores,  and  frequently  the  pores  were  too 
small  for  the  corpuscles.  In  either  case  this  condition 
was  called  stricture,  and  the  opposite  condition  was 
relaxation.  This  was  the  sum  and  substance  of  all 
diseases,  and  they  were  treated  accordingly.  His  treat- 
ment consisted  in  friction,  wine,  exercise,  and  bathing. 

Asclepiades  had  numerous  and  respectable  disciples, 
among  whom  may  be  mentioned  Stephanus,  of  Byzan- 
tium, and  Marcus  Artorius,  physician  to  the  Emperor 
Augustus.  Artorius  was  shipwrecked  and  lost  at  sea, 
about  30  B.C.  The  most  illustrious  of  all  his  disciples, 
and  the  real  founder  of  the  Methodic  school,  was  Themi- 
son,  of  Laodicea.  He  amplified  the  doctrines  of  Ascle- 
piades, and  labored  to  establish  three  divisions  of 
disease.     Those  caused  by  stricture,  those  by  relaxation, 


THE    PNEUMATIC   SCHOOL.  41 

and  those  of  a  mixed  nature ;  all  other  causes  of  disease 
were  discarded. 

The  Methodic  school  was  sandwiched  between  the 
Dogmatic  and  the  Empiric  schools.  They  aimed  to 
avoid  the  vague  theories  and  occult  causes  of  disease  of 
the  former,  and  escape  the  laborious  experimental  obser- 
vations of  the  latter ;  in  short,  they  proposed  to  open  up 
a  royal  road  and  make  the  study  of  medicine  easy ;  and, 
indeed,  one  of  the  followers  of  this  school,  by  the  name 
of  Thessalus  Trallianus,  boasted  of  his  ability  to  teach 
the  whole  art  in  six  months. 

Soranus  was  one  of  the  ablest  and  most  brilliant 
practitioners  of  this  school,  and  is  spoken  of  in  flattering 
terms,  even  by  his  opponents  of  the  other  schools.  He 
died  about  140  a.d. 

Celsus  and  Rufus  the  Ephesian  were  both  inclined  to 
the  doctrines  of  this  school.  The  former  was  noted  for 
his  pure  Latin  and  the  elegancy  of  his  style.  Neither 
one,  however,  contributed  any  new  theory  to  those 
already  in  existence. 

This  school  was  subdivided  into  several  sects.  Athe- 
neus,  of  Attaleia,  who  was  a  polished  and  skillful  phy- 
sician, added  a  fifth  principle,  which  he  called  spirits 
or  air,  which  controlled  and  directed  everything,  and, 
when  disturbed,  was  the  cause  of  diseases ;  and  from  this 
fact  this  was  called  the 

PNEUMATIC  SECT  OR  SCHOOL. 

Areteus  was  one  of  the  most  famous  of  this  sect. 


42  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

There  were  eminent  physicians  after  the  rise  of  the 
three  prominent  schools  already  mentioned,  who,  it 
seems,  were  able  to  divest  themselves  of  prejudice  suffi- 
ciently to  see  that  neither  one  of  these  schools  contained 
the  entire  truth,  but  that  there  was  some  good  in  all  of 
them;  and  like  the  school  of  ancient  Eclectic  philo- 
sophers, undertook  to  select  from  the  three  what  seemed 
to  them  good  and  proper.  This  school  called  themselves 
the 

EPISYNTHETIC  OR  ECLECTIC  SCHOOL. 

Of  course,  they  made  a  failure,  as  will  always  be  the 
case  with  an  institution  which  has  no  principles  of  its 
own.  The  experience  of  the  world  has  taught  us  that 
an  extensive  business  cannot  be  safely  conducted  upon 
a  borrowed  capital  exclusively.  It  is  better  to  advocate 
principles  of  our  own,  even  though  they  be  erroneous. 

Many  renowned  physicians  have  been  Eclectics,  ac- 
cording to  the  true  meaning  of  the  term ;  but  a  moment's 
reflection  will  convince  any  reasonable  man  of  the  im- 
possibility of  establishing  a  school  of  Eclecticism ;  for 
as  soon  as  an  institution  attaches  itself  to  a  certain  set  of 
fixed  principles,  even  though  they  be  borrowed,  that  in- 
stitution becomes  dogmatic. 

There  were  several  prominent  physicians  that  adhered 
to  this  school ;  among  them  Agathinus,  Philip,  of 
Csesarea,  Archigenes,  who  lived  in  the  time  of  Trajan, 
although  neither  the  Methodic  nor  any  of  its  subdi- 
visions ever  had  a  very  extensive  following. 


GALEN.  43 


CHAPTER  V. 

Claudius  Galen — Biography — Education— Distracted  Condition 
of  Medicine — Opportunities  for  Distinction — Revival  and 
Hevision  of  Dogmatism — His  Writings  and  Opinions — The 
Impress  they  Made  Upon  the  Medical  World — His  Cowardice. 

The  next  prominent  character  which  arrests  our 
attention  in  the  history  of  medicine  is  Claudius  Galen, 
who  was  born  in  Pergamus,  in  the  year  131  a.d.  Per- 
gamus  was  a  formidable  rival,  as  a  seat  of  learning,  to 
the  city  of  Alexandria,  having  at  one  time  the  next 
largest  library  in  existence. 

Galen  was  well  schooled  in  philosophy,  having  studied, 
under  his  father's  tuition,  the  system  of  Aristotle.  He 
studied  the  Platonic  philosophy  under  Gaius,  who  was 
also  a  stoic  and  an  Epicurean.  He  wrote  commentaries 
on  philosophy  before  he  was  twenty  years  old.  He 
seems  to  have  been  inclined  to  skepticism,  both  in 
philosophy  and  medicine,  in  his  younger  days.  He 
claims#to  have  studied  medicine  by  the  expressed  direc- 
tion of  the  gods,  both  he  and  his  father  having  been 
advised  by  Apollo,  in  a  vision,  to  that  effect.  He  was  as 
well  educated  in  medicine  as  in  philosophy.  He  received 
his  instruction  in  anatomy  from  Satyrus,  who  had  the 
reputation  of  being  well  qualified  in  this  department. 
He  received  instruction  from  distinguished  teachers  in 


44  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

both  the  Dogmatic  and  Empiric  schools.  After  he  had 
completed  his  studies  in  these  schools  he  attended  the 
lectures  of  Pelops,  at  Smyrna,  after  which  he  traveled 
extensively.  He  also  visited  Alexandria,  which  still 
maintained  a  high  reputation  as  a  medical  centre,  where 
he  remained  a  considerable  time,  to  complete  his  ana- 
tomical studies.  It  is  not  known  certainly  whether  he 
ever  dissected  the  human  body  or  not;  if  he  did  so  it 
was  done  clandestinely.  Most  of  his  descriptions  in 
anatomy  are  drawn  from  the  bodies  of  apes.  He  speaks 
of  the  advantages  that  Alexandria  furnished  in  the  study 
of  osteology.  It  is  a  fair  presumption  that  the  only 
complete  human  skeleton  accessible  anywhere  in  the 
world  at  that  time  was  to  be  seen  in  the  aforesaid  city. 
There  was  certainly  none  in  the  city  of  Rome  at  the 
time  of  his  sojourn  there,  which  was  several  years  after 
his  pupilage  at  Alexandria.  He  is  supposed  to  have 
died  about  the  close  of  the  second  century  A.D.  He  is 
known,  from  his  writings,  to  have  been  living  as  late  as 
197  A.D. 

Galen's  opportunities  for  distinguishing  himself  were 
very  great.  At  the  time  of  his  coming  the  medical 
world  was  in  a  singularly  chaotic  condition.  The 
Dogmatic  school  was  distracted  and  divided  into  several 
factions ;  some  following  the  old  Hippocratic  path  ; 
others  were  disciples  of  Erasistratus,  while  still  others 
were  adherents  of  Herophilus.  The  Empirics,  although 
they  had  been  numerous  and  influential,  were  at  this 


WRITINGS   OF   GALEN.  45 

time  declining.     The  Methodics  were  still  enjoying  a 
considerable  degree  of  confidence. 

Galen  undertook  the  herculean  task  of  reforming 
medicine,  for  which  his  education  had  peculiarly  fitted 
him,  having  studied  the  principles  upon  which  all  the 
schools  were  founded,  as  well  as  being  well  versed  in  all 
the  contemporaneous  systems  of  philosophy.  He  claimed 
in  the  beginning  of  his  career  to  be  an  Eclectic,  but  soon 
proved  himself  to  be  the  most  bigoted  and  intolerant 
of  Dogmatics.  He  claimed  that  none  of  his  predeces- 
sors had  understood  the  writings  of  Hippocrates,  and 
that  he  alone  was  capable  of  explaining  them;  aud 
among  his  first  efforts  as  a  medical  author  are  his  com- 
mentaries on  the  writings  of  that  distinguished  father 
in  medicine. 

Galen's  writings  are  very  extensive.  He  revived  the 
principles  of  Hippocrates,  upon  which  the  Dogmatic 
school  of  medicine  was  founded,  and  after  adding  his 
owrn  views,  impressed  them  so  firmly  upon  the  medical 
world  that  they  reigned  almost  supreme  for  nearly  six- 
teen centuries.  He  defined  medicine  as  an  art  which 
teaches  how  to  preserve  health  and  cure  diseases.  He 
had  three  conditions  for  the  body,  Sound,  Unsound  and 
Neutral.  A  perfectly  sound  body  was  seldom  or  never 
met  with,  he  thought.  He  described  eight  constitutional 
conditions,  based  upon  the  qualities  of  heat,  cold,  moist- 
ure, and  still  another  peculiarity  which  is  called  idiosyn- 
crasy.    Disease,  said   he,  begins   when   the   deviations 


46  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

become  so  great  as  to  interrupt  the  functions  of  the  part. 
He  reiterated  the  Hippocratic  doctrine  of  solids,  humors 
and  spirits,  also  the  four  humors  of  blood,  phlegm, 
yellow  bile  and  black  bile.  He  also  described  three 
kinds  of  spirits,  vital,  animal  and  natural.  He  thought 
these  spirits  arose  from  the  blood,  which  had  its  origin 
as  a  subtle  vapor  in  the  liver,  and  was  modified  by 
coming  in  contact  with  the  air  which  was  received 
through  the  lungs.  The  vital  spirits  were  lodged  in  the 
heart,  and  the  animal  spirits  in  the  brain,  which  pre- 
sided over  the  reasoning  faculties,  and  by  means  of  the 
nerves  distributed  a  power  of  motion  and  sensation  to 
all  parts  of  the  body,  which  regulated  all  the  functions. 
This  is  the  force  which  both  Hippocrates  and  Galen 
called  nature.  He,  like  Hippocrates,  divided  diseases 
into  acute  and  chronic,  epidemic,  endemic  and  sporadic. 
He  arranged  the  causes  of  diseases  under  two  heads, 
external  and  internal.  The  former  were  six  in  number, 
air,  food  and  drink,  motion  and  rest,  sleeping  and 
watching,  retention  and  excretion,  and  lastly,  the 
passions.  These  he  called  Procatarctic,  or  Beginning 
Causes,  because  they  put  in  motion  the  internal  causes 
which  are  called  the  antecedent  or  conjunct.  The  former 
are  discovered  only  by  reasoning,  and  must  consist  either 
in  a  plethoric  condition  of  the  humors  or  a  poisoning 
of  the  blood  by  an  undue  admixture  of  the  same.  He 
also  divided  the  causes  into  those  that  were  manifest 
and   evident,  and  those  that  were  latent  and  obscure, 


OPINIONS   OF   GALEN.  47 

occult  or  concealed,  and  could  not  be  discovered  at  all, 
such  as  in  hydrophobia. 

Galen  defined  a  symptom  to  be  a  preternatural  affec- 
tion depending  upon  a  disease  which  follows  the  body  as 
a  shadow.  He  made  a  distinction  between  symptoms 
and  signs  of  diseases.  He  divided  the  latter  into  diag- 
nostic and  prognostic,  also  pathognomonic  and  adjunct. 
Some  of  these  divisions  are  retained  until  the  present 
time.  His  treatment  differed  little  from  that  of  Hip- 
pocrates. He  indorsed  the  coction  of  the  latter,  which 
has  caused  untold  misery  to  those  afflicted  with  fevers  in 
past  ages.  By  coction  is  meant  the  process  by  which  the 
morbid  material  constituting  the  cause  of  the  disease 
was  prepared  for  expulsion  from  the  body.  Heat  was 
considered  necessary  to  complete  this  process,  and  extra 
covering  was  piled  upon  the  unfortunate  patient,  doors 
and  windows  closed,  heating  food  and  drinks  were  ad- 
ministered, and  nothing  of  a  cooling  nature  was  per- 
mitted. Patients  were  treated  for  a  number  of  days  in 
this  barbarous  and  inhuman  manner.  Through  the 
teachings  of  Galen  this  unnatural  practice  was  continued 
until  a  comparatively  recent  date. 

Galen's  system  of  anatomy  was  accepted  by  the  entire 
civilized  world,  until  the  time  of  Vesalius.  He  wrote 
upon  all  subjects  connected  with  medicine  in  his  day. 
He  is  the  author  of  eighty-three  treatises  acknowledged 
as  genuine;  and  nineteen  which  are  questioned;  the  re- 
puted  author  of  forty-five    undoubtedly  apochryphal; 


48  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

nineteen,  fragments  of  which  only  have  been  preserved, 
and  fifteen  commentaries  on  the  different  works  of  Hip- 
pocrates, besides  a  number  that  have  been  entirely  lost. 
His  books  on  auatomy  and  physiology  are  considered  the 
most  important  of  all  his  writings.  His  pathology  was 
speculative  and  imperfect.  In  diagnosis  and  prognosis 
he  laid  great  stress  upou  pulse.  He  placed  great  stress 
upon  critical  days,  which  he  believed  were  influenced  by 
the  moon.  His  materia  medica,  considered  in  the  light 
of  recent  science,  is  worth  little  or  nothing.  He  had 
more  faith  in  amulets  than  medicine,  and  he  is  supposed 
to  be  the  author  of  the  anodyne  necklace  so  long  in 
favor  in  some  parts  of  Europe.  His  practice  was  based 
on  the  fundamental  principle  that  disease  is  contrary  to 
nature,  and  that  it  must  be  cured  by  that  which  is  con- 
trary to  the  disease  itself. 

After  Galen's  time  the  different  schools  of  medicine 
then  in  existence  gradually  declined,  and  the  entire 
medical  world  formed  one  vast  system  of  Galenites, 
which  was  a  revival  and  revision  of  Dogmatism. 

His  works  were  translated  into  the  Arabic  during  the 
ninth  century,  and  were  at  once  adopted  in  the  East,  al- 
most to  the  exclusion  of  all  other  writings.  In  fact, 
they  seemed  to  have  reigned  supreme  throughout  the 
whole  civilized  world,  until  about  the  middle  of  the  six- 
teenth century.  An  illustration  of  this  assertion  may  be 
cited : — 

In  1559  A.D.,  Dr.  Geynes  was  called  before  the  Col- 


galen's  cowardice.  49 

lege  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  of  London,  for  impugn- 
ing the  infallibility  of  Galen,  when  he  had  to  make  a 
humble  acknowledgment  and  recantation  of  his  error, 
in  writing,  before  he  could  enjoy  any  further  privileges 
of  the  College. 

The  darkest  page  in  the  history  of  Galen  is  that 
which  records  his  cowardice.  He  ignominiously  fled 
from  every  danger  which  threatened  him.  We  first  read 
of  his  fleeing  from  his  native  city,  Pergamus,  in  conse- 
quence of  a  revolt  which  took  place  in  that  city  early  in 
his  life.  The  appearance  of  the  plague  in  the  city  of 
Rome  again  struck  his  soul  with  terror,  and  he  retired 
into  Greece.  Soon  after  this  he  was  summoned  by  the 
emperors  Marcus  Aurelius  and  Lucius  Verus  to'  attend 
them  in  northeastern  Italy,  where  they  were  warring 
against  the  barbarian  Germanic  tribes ;  but  another 
pestilence  broke  out,  of  which  Lucius  Verus  sickened 
and  died,  when  he  again  deserted  his  post  and  returned 
to  Rome,  where  he  begged  to  be  allowed  to  remain, 
pleading  as  an  excuse  that  it  was  the  will  of  iEsculapius, 
as  revealed  to  him  in  a  vision.  Such  conduct  is  calcu- 
lated to  excite  derision  and  contempt  among  modern 
physicians,  who  have  been  schooled  to  brave  every  dan- 
ger and  sacrifice  their  lives,  if  necessary,  in  order  to 
relieve  the  suffering  sick — two  notable  ^examples  of 
which  have  occurred  in  this  country  within  the  last  few 
vears.  The  first  was  during  the  War  of  the  Rebellion. 
The  records  in  the  Surgeon  General's  office  show  that 


50  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

more  medical  officers  were  killed  and  wounded  on  the 
field,  or  lost  their  lives  from  disease,  in  proportion  to 
their  numbers,  than  any  other  line  of  staff  officers  in  the 
service.  The  other  example  is  only  too  fresh  in  the 
memory  of  every  citizen  of  this  republic.  It  occurred 
during  the  recent  epidemic  of  yellow  fever  which  so 
terribly  scourged  our  sister  cities  of  the  South.  The 
conduct  of  the  medical  men  of  these  cities  and  those 
persons  who  dared  to  hasten  to  their  relief,  has  shed  a 
halo  of  glory  about  the  profession  in  that  section  of  the 
country  which  time  can  never  efface.  And  had  it  not 
been  for  the  absolute  certainty  that  the  presence  of  un- 
acclimated  persons  would  only  add  to  their  burdens, 
thousands  of  brave  men  from  the  North  would  have 
gone  to  their  relief.  Let  us  always  imitate  the  noble 
example  of  bravery  and  fortitude  they  set  us  in  their 
terrific  battle  with  death.  There  will  always  be  room  in 
heaven  for  such  men.  They  are  fit  companions  for  the 
gods. 


INFLUENCE   OF   THE   CHRISTIAN   CHURCH.  51 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Doctrines  and  Influence  of  the  Christian  Church  on  the  Progress 
of  Medicine  —  Priestcraft  —  Prayers,  Incantations  —  Holy 
Waters,  Ointments,  etc. — Ignorance  and  Superstition — Reign 
of  Justinian — Destruction  of  the  School  at  Athens — The  Nes- 
tor ians — School  at  Edessa — BagJidad — Preservation  of  Medi- 
cine by  the  Arabians — Schools  in  Spain — Rhazes—Hali- 
Abbas — Avicenna — Albucasis — Improvements  Introduced  by 
tlie  Arabians. 

The  doctrines  of  the  Christian  Church,  as  understood 
during  the  early  centuries  of  the  Christian  era,  opposed 
a  formidable  obstacle  to  the  progress  of  medicine.  The 
idea  prevailed  extensively  that  the  power  of  curing  dis- 
eases by  divine  interposition  was  received  from  Christ 
by  his  disciples,  and  had  been  transmitted  to  the  elders 
and  deacons  in  each  community  where  churches  had 
been  established.  A  belief  in  this  power  contributed 
more  to  the  establishment  of  Christianity  than  any  other 
thing  connected  therewith.  The  people  had  escaped 
from  the  clutches  of  the  priesthood  of  the  Asclepiadse — 
who  practiced  medicine  in  the  ancient  temples  of  iEscu- 
lapius  more  than  five  hundred  years  previous  to  this 
time — only  to  be  enslaved  by  a  more  bigoted  and  intol- 
erant priesthood. 

The  former,  in  addition  to  their  tomfoolery,  absurd 
rites  and  ceremonies,  had  cultivated  medicine  as  a  real 


52  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

art,  and  were  making  some  progress  therein ;  but  the 
latter  abandoned  the  use  of  medicinal  agents  and  re- 
sorted to  such  means  as  the  laying  on  of  hands,  anoint- 
ing with  holy  oils,  ointments,  and  holy  waters,  prayers, 
incantations,  relics  of  saints  and  apostles,  and  so  on. 
According  to  this  method  of  curing  diseases  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  structure  of  the  human  body  was  unneces- 
sary, and  consequently  anatomy  languished  and  died. 
It  made  no  difference  how  the  different  organs  per- 
formed their  functions,  the  cure  was  effected  all  the 
same,  and  physiology  was  not  cultivated.  Pathology 
was  not  of  the  slightest  consequence,  and  as  little  or 
no  value  was  set  upon  the  use  of  medicine,  a  knowl- 
edge of  materia  medica  and  chemistry  was  regarded  as 
useless ;  hence,  a  cultivation  of  all  the  sciences  necessary 
upon  which  to  found  a  rational  system  of  medicine 
was  neglected,  and  in  many  instances  positively  for- 
bidden. 

The  same  ignorance  and  superstition  in  a  more  refined 
form  which  had  prevailed  in  Egypt  two  thousand  years 
before,  in  regard  to  the  influence  of  the  gods  in  producing 
disease,  was  revived. 

All  diseases,  plagues  and  pestilences  were  regarded  as 
a  providential  visitation  for  some  imaginary  or  real  sin, 
and  although  human  sacrifices,  or  the  sacrifice  of  animals 
or  the  first  fruits  of  the  earth,  were  not  resorted  to  to 
appease  the  wrath  of  the  offended  divinities,  the  same 
methods,  in  the  way  of  prayers,  incantations,  etc.,  were 


DESTRUCTION   OF   THE   SCHOOL   AT   ATHENS.       53 

adopted,  but  addressed  to  other  gods.  For  ray  own  part, 
I  have  more  confidence  in  a  few  barrels  of  carbolic  acid 
or  chloride  of  lime  in  arresting  an  epidemic  than  I  have 
in  all  the  petitions  which  ever  ascended  to  the  throne. 

Cures  were  often  effected,  however,  in  this  way, 
principally  of  chronic  diseases  and  nervous  disorders, 
which  class  of  cases  is  the  most  easily  influenced  by 
mental  impressions,  which  is  the  real  modus  operandi 
by  which  they  were  relieved,  as  it  was  by  the  Ascle- 
piadae  in  the  ancient  temples.  If  the  patients  did  not 
recover  and  pestilences  cease  their  ravages,  it  was  because 
it  was  not  the  will  of  Him  whose  servants  they  repre- 
sented themselves  to  be. 

During  the  fourth  and  fifth  centuries  Christianity 
extended  its  doctrines  throughout  the  Roman  Empire, 
and  the  pagan  philosophers,  who  still  taught  philosophy, 
the  arts  and  sciences,  as  well  as  medicine,  were  every- 
where persecuted  by  the  bigoted  and  intolerant  Christians; 
and  during  the  reign  of  Justinian,  527-565  A.D.,  they 
were  deprived  of  their  annuities,  which  had  been  con- 
ferred upon  them  ages  before,  and  were  compelled  to  seek 
safety  in  foreign  countries.  The  renowned  schools  at 
Athens  and  other  places  were  completely  obliterated. 

A  few  words  by  way  of  digression  are  necessary  to 
explain  how  medicine  was  transferred  from  the  Roman 
Empire  to  Arabia. 

Slight  differences  of  opinion  among  Christians  were 
sometimes  sufficient  to  lead  to  the  most  bloody  tragedies. 


54  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

• 

In  429  a.d.  Nestorius  was  elected  Bishop  of  Constanti- 
nople, where  he  began  to  persecute  all  heretics,  and 
invoked  the  aid  of  the  civil  authorities  to  help  him  free 
the  country  of  them.  But  he  was  soon  persecuted  in 
turn,  because  he  could  not  square  his  belief  by  the  in- 
flexible rule  of  orthodoxy.  His  offense  consisted  in 
denying  that  Mary  was  the  mother  of  God.  He  did 
not  believe  that  humanity  could  be  the  parent  of  divinity, 
and  that  the  latter  could  receive  nourishment  and  suste- 
nance through  the  body  of  the  former,  or  could  suffer 
or  die.  He  did  not  deny,  however,  that  both  divinity 
and  humanity  were  united  in  the  person  of  Christ,  but 
claimed  that  Mary  was  the  mother  of  the  latter  only — 
a  very  sensible  view  of  the  matter,  and  one  that  would 
not  excite  such  a  bitter  controversy  among  the  more 
intelligent  Christians  of  to-day.  For  preaching  this 
doctrine  Nestorius  was  banished  to  Tarsus,  where  he 
was  captured  by  the  barbarians  in  435  A.D.,  and  soon 
afterward  met  with  an  accidental  death. 

I  give  this  brief  biographical  sketch  of  Nestorius 
because  the  sect  of  Christians  which  bore  his  name  was 
the  means  by  which  medicine  was  conveyed  into  Persia 
and  Arabia,  and  consequently  the  first  step  on  the  road 
to  its  preservation  from  total  destruction. 

The  Nestorians,  after  their  expulsion  from  the  Em- 
pire, settled  at  Edessa,  in  Mesopotamia,  where  they  es- 
tablished a  school  of  medicine  which  soon  became  re- 
nowned, and  students  gathered  there  from  all  countries 


BAGHDAD.  55 

to  be  instructed  in  the  art.  They  taught  clinical  medi- 
cine in  a  public  hospital,  which  is  thought  to  have  been 
the  first  institution  of  the  kind  established  in  the  world 
for  that  purpose.  They  found  an  asylum  in  this  infi- 
del country,  where  they  were  protected  and  encouraged. 
They  established  schools  at  other  points ;  and  be  it  said, 
to  the  shame  and  disgrace  of  the  church,  and  to  the 
credit  and  honor  of  the  Persians,  that  there  was  more 
religious  tolerance  in  the  country  of  the  latter  than  in 
all  Christendom. 

It  was  by  means  of  these  schools  established  by  the 
Nestorians,  and  the  teachings  of  the  philosophers  who 
were  expelled  from  Athens  by  Justinian,  that  medicine 
and  other  arts  and  sciences  were  introduced  into  Arabia, 
where  they  were  preserved  for  a  period  of  nearly  ten 
centuries,  and  restored  to  the  West  after  the  revival  of 
letters  in  the  fourteenth  century. 

During  the  eighth  century  (762-766  a.d.,)  the  Caliph 
Almansur  built  the  city  of  Baghdad,  which  became  fa- 
mous as  a  seat  of  learning.  A  medical  school  was  estab- 
lished here,  at  which  the  number  of  students  in  attendance 
at  one  time  is  said  to  have  been  over  six  thousand.  It  was 
under  the  patronage  of  these  schools  and  the  authorities 
who  protected  and  encouraged  them  that  the  works  of 
the  ancient  Greek  physicians  and  philosophers  were 
translated  into  the  Arabic.  This  was  accomplished 
under  the  reign  of  the  Caliph  Almamun,  in  the  first 
half  of  the  ninth  century.     They  also  established  num- 


56  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

erous  schools  in  Spain  during  the  eighth  century ;  the 
most  famous  in  the  world  was  the  University  of  Cordova, 
founded  by  Alhakem  the  Second.  Before  his  death  he  had 
collected  600,000  volumes  of  manuscripts,  of  which  the 
catalogues  alone  filled  forty  huge  folios. 

The  arts,  sciences,  music  and  medicine  were  taught  in 
this  university,  and  the  inhabitants  of  this  city  were 
the  most  highly  cultured  of  any  people  in  the  whole 
world  at  that  time. 

Many  authors  in  medicine  appeared  from  time  to  time, 
among  the  Arabians,  of  which  there  were  over  two 
hundred  and  fifty  in  Spain  alone. 

It  is  altogether  foreign  to  my  purpose  to  give  any  ex- 
tracts from  their  writings,  as  they  produced  no  new  theories 
or  dogmas  upon  which  any  new  sect  or  school  was  founded, 
which  is  the  particular  line  of  information  sought  in 
preparing  this  essay.  Among  their  most  prominent 
authors  may  be  mentioned  the  following :  Rhazes,  who 
was  famous  about  the  close  of  the  ninth  century.  He 
was  a  professor  in  the  renowned  school  at  Baghdad.  The 
most  valuable  of  his  works  were  on  the  subject  of  chem- 
istry, of  which  there  were  several  volumes. 

Hali  Abbas  flourished  about  the  close  of  the  tenth 
century.  Among  his  writings  his  work  on  diet  is 
considered  a  good  production  for  the  age  in  which  he 
lived. 

Avicenna,  another  one  of  their  celebrated  authors,  was 
born  at  Bokharra,  in   Chorassan,  about  980  a.d.     He 


ARABIAN  IMPROVEMENTS.  57 

was  the  author  of  a  renowed  work,  called  the  Ca?i<m, 
which  had  a  great  reputation  in  some  portions  of  Asia 
and  Europe  for  a  period  extending  over  five  hundred 
years. 

Albucacis  was  born  near  Cordova,  Spain,  some  time 
during  the  latter  half  of  the  eleventh  century.  His 
best  production  was  a  small  work  on  surgery,  written 
late  in  life. 

Taking  the  general  average,  we  are  compelled  to  say 
that  medicine  was  not  much  improved  by  its  sojourn 
among  the  Arabians.  Anatomy,  physiology  and  surgery 
retrograded.  They  followed  Galen  blindly  in  anatomy, 
the  original  text  of  whose  work  was  erroneous  to  a  great 
degree,  and  it  suffered  severely  by  an  incorrect  trans- 
lation. Chemistry  was  considerably  improved,  as  was 
also  materia  medica.  They  gave  us  several  new  remedies, 
which  were  valuable  acquisitions,  and  many  of  them  are 
still  in  use.  They  were  the  first,  perhaps,  to  discover 
the  process  of  making  sugar,  although  the  cane  and  its 
juice  was  known  to  the  ancient  Greeks.  They  certainly 
introduced  syrups  into  pharmacy.  They  also  brought 
the  process  of  distillation  to  the  attention  of  the  world, 
if  they  did  not  invent  it,  thus  giving  us  alcohol  and  the 
various  tinctures  made  therefrom. 


58  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Progress  of  Medicine  in  the  West— Destruction  of  Roman 
Empire —  Ecclesiastics—  Oribasius  — JEtius  —  Alexander  of 
Tralles—Paulus  uEgineta— Attempted  Revival  of  Letters  dur- 
ing the  Reign  of  Charlemagne  —  Theosophy  and  Astrology 
—Schools  of  Monte  Cassino  and  Salerno— Cures  by  Prayer 
— Revival  of  Practical  Anatomy  by  Mondini,  1315  a.d. — 
Important  Events  during  the  Century — Cabalistic  Medicine- 
Cornelius  Agrippa— Jerome  Cardan — Paracelsus— Chemical 
ScJiool  of  Medicine— Doctrines  of,  and  their  Influence. 

During  the  time  when  medicine  was  protected  and 
encouraged  in  Arabia  the  progress  of  contemporaneous 
events  in  the  West  was  calculated  seriously  to  dis- 
courage its  development.  The  invasion  and  destruction 
of  the  Roman  Empire  by  the  barbarians  almost  ex- 
tinguished the  last  ray  of  light,  and  universal  darkness 
and  gloom  settled  like  a  funeral  pall  over  the  entire 
country. 

The  practice  of  medicine  passed  into  the  hands  of  the 
ecclesiastics ;  and  finally,  the  members  of  the  superior 
clergy  were  forbidden  to  practice ;  but  the  lower  orders, 
such  as  deans,  sub-deans  and  monks,  were  permitted  to 
continue,  but  were  positively  forbidden  to  draw  blood, 
or  use  the  actual  cautery,  under  the  penalty  of  excommu- 
nication. 

During;  the  first  ten  centuries  of  the  Christian  era  but 


PAULUS   jEGINETA.  59 

few  names  as  medical  authors  shine  with  sufficient  bril- 
liancy to  pierce  the  dark  curtain  that  veils  that  period. 
Prominent  among  those  not  already  noticed  may  be 
mentioned  the  following  : — 

Oribasius,  a  celebrated  physician  of  the  fourth  cen- 
tury, and  much  esteemed  by  the  Emperor  Julian.  He 
abridged  the  works  of  Galen  and  the  most  important 
works  of  the  ancients,  at  the  request  of  the  emperor. 
This  abridgement  comprised  about  seventy  books,  of 
which  less  than  one-third  have  been  handed  down  to  us. 
He  accompanied  Julian  upon  his  campaigns  in  the  East, 
but  was  unable  to  prevent  his  death  from  a  wound  re- 
ceived in  battle  with  the  Persians.  After  Julian's  death 
Oribasius  was  captured  by  the  barbarians. 

iEtius  was  born  in  Amida,  Mesopotamia,  about  the 
close  of  the  fifth  century.  He  is  celebrated  as  a  com- 
piler. He  is  the  author  of  a  book  called  the  Tetra- 
biblos,  which  is  a  collection  of  the  opinions  of  all  the 
authors  who  preceded  him,  and  is  consequently  valuable 
as  a  historical  work. 

Alexander,  of  Tralles,  was  also  an  author  of  this  era, 
and  improved  the  practice  in  some  unimportant  details, 
but  produced  no  new  theories. 

Paulus  iEgineta  is  worthy  of  particular  mention  on 
account  of  his  fame  as  a  surgeon  and  obstetrician,  being 
regarded  as  the  real  founder  of  the  latter  science.  He 
was  born  on  the  island  of  iEgina,  about  the  close  of  the 
sixth  century.     He  was  educated  at  Alexandria,  and  was 


60  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

in  his  prime  during  the  first  half  of  the  seventh  century. 
He  made  a  valuable  compilation  from  the  writings  of 
his  predecessors,  which  contained  almost  everything  of 
value  known  of  medicine  by  the  ancient  Greeks.  We 
possess  a  good  English  translation  of  his  work7  which,  as 
a  matter  of  medical  history,  is  unsurpassed  in  value. 

A  feeble  attempt  was  made  during  the  reign  of  Char- 
lemagne (767-814  a.d.)  to  revive  letters  in  the  West,  and 
although  he  was  illiterate  himself,  being  unable  even  to 
write  his  own  name,  he  encouraged  learning  in  others, 
established  a  society  at  his  court,  of  learned  men,  com- 
posed mostly  of  foreigners,  to  whom  he  presented  a 
valuable  library.  He  also  established  schools  in  con- 
nection with  various  convents  throughout  his  kingdom, 
and  in  805  a.d.  he  ordered  medicine  to  be  taught  in 
some  of  these  schools,  under  the  name  of  Physic,  from 
which  circumstance  the  name  physician  was  first  applied 
to  those  practicing  the  art. 

For  several  centuries  succeeding  this  period  medicine 
was  taught  and  practiced  almost  exclusively  by  eccle- 
siastics, and  theosophy  and  astrology  were  strangely  and 
inconsistently  commingled  with  it.  We  are  struck  with 
amazement  at  the  ignorance  and  superstition  that  existed, 
even  among  the  most  learned,  during  that  period. 

Schools  were  established  by  the  monks  at  various 
points  throughout  all  Christendom.  Two  of  the  most 
celebrated  were  located  at  Monte  Cassino  and  Salerno, 
in  the  Kingdom  of  Naples.     Until  about  the  close  of 


MONDINI.  61 

the  tenth  century  diseases  were  cured  exclusively  by 
prayer  at  both  these  schools ;  but  during  the  eleventh 
century  the  works  of  the  Arabians  were  translated  by 
Constantine,  the  African,  and  they  began  to  mingle 
science  with  their  superstition. 

Anatomy,  physiology  and  chemistry  were  not  studied 
in  any  of  these  schools,  and  consequently  little  or  no 
progress  was  made. 

During  the  thirteenth,  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  cen- 
turies medicine  in  the  West  failed  to  advance  as  rapidly 
as  the  revival  of  learning  would  seem  to  warrant  us 
in  expecting.  Some  progress  was  made,  however,  in 
France,  Germany  and  England.  Spain,  after  the  expul- 
sion of  the  Moors  by  the  Christians,  was  again  enveloped 
in  ignorance  and  superstition. 

Practical  anatomy  was  revived  in  1315  a.d.,  by  Mon- 
dini,  a  professor  in  the  school  at  Bologna,  who  dissected 
two  human  bodies  before  his  classes — the  first  time  this 
had  been  attempted  since  the  days  of  Herophilus  and 
Erasistratus,  about  320  B.C.  Not  much  immediate 
benefit,  however,  was  realized  from  this  innovation.  It 
was  impossible  at  this  time  to  make  headway  against 
the  pernicious  influence  of  astrology  and  theosophy ,  which 
had  infested  all  the  schools.  More  attention  was  paid 
to  the  reign  of  certain  stars  than  to  the  study  of  any 
science  which  could  be  of  real  advantage  to  medicine. 
Exalted  virtues  were  ascribed  to  medicines  prepared 
during  the  conjunction  of  Venus  and   Jupiter.     This 


62  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

and  similar  nonsense  was  taught  in  nearly  all  the  schools, 
and  the  number  of  minds  not  affected  thereby  is  said  to 
have  been  remarkably  few. 

Many  important  events  occurred  in  this  century 
which  gave  an  impetus  to  learning.  Emanuel  Chryso- 
loras,  an  ambassador  from  the  Eastern  Empire,  delivered 
a  course  of  lectures  in  Italy,  on  the  Greek  language  and 
literature. 

During  the  disintegration  of  the  Eastern  Empire  by 
the  Turks,  many  sages  escaped  the  country,  bringing 
their  literary  treasures  with  them  into  Italy,  and  by 
this  means  the  original  Greek  text  of  many  works  was 
restored,  having  been  previously  known  only  through 
the  Arabic  translations,  which,  in  many  cases,  were  very 
erroneous. 

But  the  most  important  event  which  occurred  during  this 
century,  and  the  one  above  all  others  which  contributed 
more  to  the  dissemination  of  human  knowledge,  was  the 
invention  of  the  art  of  printing,  by  John  Gutenburg,  in 
1438  a.d.,  which  process  was  brought  to  a  considerable 
degree  of  perfection  by  the  joint  labors  of  himself  and 
Faust,  by  1460  a.d. 

During  the  remainder  of  the  fifteenth  and  the  first 
part  of  the  sixteenth  century,  the  works  of  Hippocrates 
and  Galen  were  translated  in  England,  France,  Germany, 
and  Italy,  and  the  profession  was  being  gradually 
brought  back  to  the  path  marked  out  by  these  two  emi- 
nent fathers  in  the  art.     But  the  same  gross  errors  and 


PARACELSUS.  63 

superstitions  that  had  disgraced  the  world  during  pre- 
vious times  had  to  be  met  and  combated.  Cabalistic 
and  astrological  theories  were  advanced  and  advocated 
by  various  parties.  Cornelius  Agrippa  sowed  the  seeds, 
throughout  all  Europe,  of  a  doctrine  fully  as  degrading 
as  the  demonology  of  the  ancient  Egyptians  during  the 
mythological  age.  He  believed  that  everything  in  na- 
ture was  the  habitation  of  demons — air,  fire,  water,  land, 
men,  animals,  etc.  He  believed  that  these  demons  were 
the  cause  of  all  diseases,  and,  of  course,  the  treatment 
prescribed  in  accordance  with  that  view  was  necessarily 
absurd  in  the  same  degree.  He  died  at  Grenoble,  in 
1535  a.  d. 

Jerome  Cardan  was  another  eminent  disciple  of  Caba- 
listic medicine.  He  was  born  at  Pavia,  in  1501  A.  D.  He 
received  an  excellent  education,  and  was  professor  of 
mathematics  for  a  short  time  at  Milan.  He  traveled 
extensively,  but  was  more  of  a  vagabond  than  anything 
else.  His  writings  are  absurd  in  some  respects.  He 
taught  that  the  different  parts  of  the  body  are  under  the 
dominion  of  different  stars.  He  records  the  most  ex- 
travagant stories,  visions,  dreams,  sorceries,  etc.,  and 
explains  them  by  means  of  the  cabal.  He  died  at  Rome 
in  1576  A.  D. 

Paracelsus,  the  founder  of  the 

CHEMICAL  SCHOOL  OF   MEDICINE, 

was  born  in  a  small,  village  near  Zurich,  in  Switzerland, 
in  1493  A.  D.     His  real  name  was  Hohenheim,  but  on 


64  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

beginning  his  professional  career  he  assumed  the  high- 
sounding  cognomen  of  Phillipus  Aureolus  Theophrastus 
Bonibastus  Paracelsus,  a  name  which  is  somewhat  of  an 
index  to  the  character  of  the  man.  His  education  was 
limited.  It  is  doubtful  whether  he  ever  attended  any 
regular  school.  His  father,  who  was  a  physician  and 
chemist,  instructed  him  to  the  best  of  his  ability,  after 
which  he  advised  him  to  travel  and  be  instructed  by 
the  most  learned  men  in  various  countries.  He  did 
travel  over  a  large  portion  of  the  civilized  world,  but 
instead  of  attending  lectures  in  the  universities,  he 
seems  to  have  sought  the  company  of  magicians  and 
alchemists,  boasting  that  their  knowledge  was  superior 
to  that  taught  in  the  schools.  His  natural  inclinations 
led  him  to  adopt  the  chimerical  theories  of  the  cabal.  He 
openly  boasted  that  he  had  not  opened  a  book  for  ten  years. 
He  probably  maintained  himself  during  his  travels  by  sell- 
ing quack  nostrums  and  performing  feats  of  magic,  in 
which  his  knowledge  of  chemistry  was  a  great  assistance 
to  him.  His  reputation  soon  became  so  great  that  he  was 
called  upon  to  treat  a  great  many  dignitaries,  and  he 
boasted  that  he  had  cured  thirteen  princes  whose  cases 
had  been  regarded  as  hopeless  by  other  physicians. 
He  was  patronized  and  encouraged  by  eminent  men  ; 
among  them  may  be  mentioned  Sigismund  Fugger, 
whose  family  was  celebrated  for  the  patronage  and  pro- 
tection they  gave  to  the  arts  and  sciences.  By  the 
recommendation   of   Ecolampadius,   he   was   appointed 


DEATH   OF   PARACELSUS.  65 

professor  of  physic  and  surgery  at  Basle,  Switzerland, 
where  he  began  his  career  by  abusing  his  predecessors 
and  contemporaries.  He  publicly  burned  the  works 
of  Galen  and  Avicenna,  exclaiming  that  "  Galea  did  not 
know  as  much  as  his  shoe  latchds"  and  that  "reading 
never  made  a  physician.  Countries"  said  he,  "  are  the 
leaves  upon  which  nature's  laws  are  written,  and  patients 
are  my  only  books"  By  his  neglect  in  studying  books 
lie  had  forgotten  what  little  Latin  he  had  learned  from 
his  father,  and  was  compelled  to  deliver  his  lectures  in 
the  vulgar  vernacular.  His  class-room,  at  first  was 
filled  to  overflowing,  but  was  soon  deserted.  About 
this  time  he  became  exceedingly  intemperate,  being 
drunk  every  day,  never  undressing  himself,  and  always 
sleeping  with  his  sword  buckled  upon  him ;  frequently 
arising  in  the  night,  and,  during  his  delirium,  flourish- 
ing it  around  the  room  in  such  a  reckless  manner  that 
his  secretary,  who  relates  these  circumstances,  expected 
each  moment  to  have  his  head  severed  from  his  body. 

Paracelsus  did  not  retain  his  professorship  long.  His 
intemperate  habits  and  uncontrollable  temper  soon 
engendered  difficulties,  which  caused  his  expulsion  from 
Basle  by  the  town  council,  and  he  recommenced  his 
wanderings.  Everywhere  he  went  he  excited  a  furious 
hatred  between  himself  and  the  regular  faculty,  which, 
at  Salsburg,  resulted  in  his  being  thrown  out  of  the 
window  of  an  inn  by  the  doctor's  servants,  the  fall 
breaking  his  neck.     This  event  occurred  in  1541  A.  D. 


66  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

It  is  a  matter  of  surprise  to  modern  students  in  the 
history  of  medicine  how  such  an  ignorant  boaster  as 
Paracelsus  could  so  impress  his  doctrines  upon  the  medi- 
cal world  that  their  influence  should  be  felt  for  centuries 
after  his  death.  The  age  seemed  to  be  ripe  for  such  an 
adventurer.  He  forms  the  connecting  link  between 
alchemy  and  chemistry,  and  notwithstanding  he  was  re- 
garded as  the  founder  of  the  chemical  school  of  medicine, 
his  knowledge  of  that  science  must  have  been  vague  and 
indefinite.  He  asserted  that  the  human  body  was  com- 
posed of  salt,  sulphur  and  mercury,  and  that  in  these 
elementary  principles  resided  health  and  disease;  that 
mercury,  by  its  volatility,  caused  mortifications,  mad- 
ness, delirium  and  frenzies ;  and  that  fevers,  inflamma- 
tions and  jaundice  were  caused  by  the  sulphurous  prin- 
ciple ;  and  colic,  calculus,  gout  and  rheumatic  diseases 
were  the  legitimate  offspring  of  salt.  He  introduced 
several  metallic  substances  to  the  attention  of  the  profes- 
sion, as  medicines,  such  as  mercury,  lead  and  antimony. 
The  latter  he  regarded  as  the  prince  of  all  medicines,  a 
perfect  cure-all  for  every  disease  with  which  mankind 
is  afflicted.  He  also  used  opium,  which  was  opposed, 
at  that  time,  by  the  Galenites.  He  administered  those 
remedies  with  an  unsjmring  hand,  and  effected  some 
brilliant  cures,  of  which  there  can  be  no  doubt.  His 
reckless  manner  of  prescribing  them,  however,  must 
have  caused  great  harm  in  other  cases.  Hi1^  method 
of  doing    business   has   been    successfully   imitated    by 


WRITINGS   OF    PARACELSUS.  67 

modern  quackery.  He  seemed  fully  to  understand  the 
weak  points  in  the  prevailing  systems  of  medicine,  and 
assaulted  them  without  mercy,  and  proceeded  to  inau- 
gurate a  system  of  his  own ;  and  although  it  is  little 
better  than  a  bundle  of  absurdities,  it  marks  the 
beginning  of  a  new  era  in  medicine,  and  forms  another 
step  in  the  painfully  slow  process  of  evolution  which 
finally  lays  the  foundation  for  a  rational  system. 

The  fundamental  principle  upon  which  the  system  of 
Paracelsus  is  based  is,  that  disease  does  not  consist  of 
disordered  blood,  phlegm  or  bile,  but  has  an  actual  exist- 
ence  of  its  own,  subject  to  its  owp-  laws,  and  acts  as  a 
blight  upon  the  body,  and  must  be  cured  by  specific  medi- 
cines. 

The  world  has,  perhaps,  been  a  -little  severe  in  its 
criticisms  upon  Paracelsus.  It  is  known  that  he 
always  stirred  up  a  violent  controversy  in  the  profes- 
sion wherever  he  journeyed,  and  this  leads  me  to  suppose 
that  justice  has  not  been  done  him  by  his  contempo- 
raries ;  and  owing  to  the  unfortunate  habit  of  intem- 
perance, which  he  contracted  early  in  life,  his  own 
writings  cannot  be  taken  as  an  index  of  his  real  merits, 
for  they  were  dictated  to  his  secretary  at  odd  times, 
when  he  was  not  professionally  engaged,  and  occasion- 
ally when  he  was  delirious  from  the  eifects  of  liquor. 
This  accounts  for  the  disconnected  and  incoherent  style 
in  which  they  are  written.  The  greatest  benefit  which 
posterity  derived  from  his  existence  was    the  stimulus 


68  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

he  gave  to  the  study  of  chemistry.  The  study  of  this 
science  was  taken  up  by  his  successors,  and  rescued  from 
the  hands  of  the  alchemists,  and  assigned  to  its  proper 
sphere  in  the  medical  sciences,  and  has  since  been 
brought  to  such  a  state  of  perfection  that  it  is  justly 
regarded  as  one  of  the  chief  corner-stones  of  the  temple 
erected  to  Rational  medicine. 

The  doctrines  of  the  Chemical  school  spread  rapidly 
through  England,  Germany  and  Italy,  being  adopted 
in  nearly  all  the  universities.  They  were  resisted  for  a 
considerable  time  in  Paris,  owing  to  the  influence  of 
John  Riolan  and  Guy  Patin  ;  but  after  the  death  of 
these  eminent  professors  they  were  adopted  in  nearly  all 
the  schools  of  France. 


THE   ROSICRUCIANS.  69 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Itosicrucians — Mystery  Connected  with  the  Origin  of  this 
Sect — Their  Absurd  Pretensions — The  Eclectic  Conciliators 
— Belief  in  Witchcraft — Transmutation  of  Metals — Demon- 
ology,  etc. — Mathematical  School — Borelli — Principles  of 
this  School — Bellini —  Unrealized  Expectations  of  this  School. 

The  progress  of  scientific  medicine  was  also  impeded 
during  this  period  by  a  fanatical  sect  called  the 

ROSICRUCIANS 

The  origin  of  this  sect  is  veiled  in  impenetrable 
mystery.  No  secret  society  that  ever  existed  preserved 
its  secrets  as  successfully  as  did  this  one.  The  origin 
of  this  society  has  given  rise  to  much  discussion,  and  a 
great  variety  of  opinions  have  been  expressed  in  regard 
thereto.  It  is  supposed  to  have  been  an  offshoot  from 
a  society  established  in  the  fourteenth  century  by 
several  monks,  with  Father  Rosenkreuz  at  their  head. 
They  have  been  confounded  by  various  authors  with  the 
orders  of  the  Rosy  Cross,  Sancti-spiritus,  Immor tales, 
Invisible  Brothers,  and  many  others. 

They  pretended  a  familiarity  with  all  the  sciences, 
and  especially  medicine,  of  which  they  claimed  to  be  the 
restorers.  They  claimed  to  possess  important  secrets, 
which  they  had  received  from  the  Egyptians,  Chaldeans, 
the  Magi  and  Gymnosophists,  which  had  never  been 
divulged  to  the  world,  and  by  which  they  could  restore 


70  MEDrCAL    HERESIES. 

0 

youth.  They  also  claimed  to  be  in  possession  of  the 
philosopher's  stone ;  so  it  will  be  seen  that  their  capital 
stock  consisted  mostly  of  absurd  pretensions.  Whatever 
may  have  been  their  claims  to  antiquity,  they  are  not 
known  in  medicine  until  the  seventeenth  century.  In 
the  beginning  of  this  century  public  attention  seemed  to 
have  been  centered  upon  religion,  mysticism,  astrology, 
alchemy  and  other  occult  sciences.  This  sect  seemed  to 
play  upon  the  credulity  of  the  age.  They  cured  disease 
by  working  upon  the  imagination  of  their  patients,  and 
are  sometimes  alluded  to  as  faith  doctors. 

During  this  century  there  also  appeared  another  sect, 
known  as  the 

ECLECTIC   CONCILIATORS. 

Some  of  the  physicians  who  attached  themselves  to 
this  school  were  well  versed  in  the  literature  of  the 
profession,  among  whom  may  be  mentioned  Daniel  Sen- 
nertus,  who  was  born  in  Breslau,  in  1572  A.  D.  In  1593 
he  attended  the  school  at  Wittemburg,  where  he  studied 
philosophy  and  physic,  after  which  he  visited  the 
universities  of  Leipsic,  Jena,  Frankfort  and  Berlin. 
Returning  to  Wittemburg  he  was  promoted  to  a  pro- 
fessorship in  the  faculty.  He  was  the  first  to  introduce 
the  study  of  chemistry  in  that  city.  He  gained  a  great 
reputation  as  a  practitioner  of  medicine  and  also  as  a 
philosopher.  He  died  of  the  plague  in  1637  A.  d.  The 
disciples  of  this  school  added  the  most  absurd  doctrines 
to  their  knowledge  of  chemistry.     They  believed  in  the 


BORELLI.  71 

transmutation  of  metals,  the  influence  of  witchcraft, 
denionology,  or  in  the  possibility  of  communing  directly 
with  the  devil  himself.  All  these  absurd  notions  con- 
tributed extensively  toward  retarding  the  progress  of 
scientific  medicine. 

The  next  sect  which  claims  our  attention  is  known  by 
the  name  of  the 

MATHEMATICAL   SCHOOL. 

This  school  was  founded  by  Giovanni  Alphonso  Borelli, 
who  was  born  at  Naples  in  1608  A.  D.  He  was  educated 
at  Florence,  and  soon  achieved  a  great  reputation  as  a 
mathematician  and  astronomer.  He  was  a  professor  at 
Pisa,  and  afterward  at  Messina,  but  having  taken  part 
in  a  revolt  which  took  place  in  the  latter  city,  he  was 
compelled  to  flee  for  his  life,  and  took  up  his  residence 
in  the  city  of  Rome,  where  he  was  protected  and 
patronized  by  Queen  Christina,  of  Sweden.  He  died 
in  the  latter  city  in  1679. 

He  is  the  author  of  a  work  called  De  Motu  Ani- 
malium,  in  which  he  ingeniously  applies  the  laws  of 
mechanics  to  the  motions  of  animals,  regarding  the 
bones  as  levers,  in  which  the  power  acts  between  the 
weight  and  the  fulcrum ;  thus  endeavoring  to  calculate 
the  power  of  the  muscles  in  the  different  portions  of 
the  body,  and  the  amount  of  force  expended  in  the 
performance  of  their  functions. 

A  celebrated  pupil  of  his,  named  Lawrence  Bellini, 
who  was  born  at  Florence  in  1643  A.  D.,  and  who  was 


72  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

a  skillful  anatomist  and  professor  at  Pisa,  undertook  to 
explain  the  functions  of  the  several  organs  of  the  body 
upon  the  same  mathematical  and  mechanical  principles. 
Various  physiologists  took  this  matter  up,  and  in  a 
short  time  the  entire  functions  of  the  body  were  ex- 
plained upon  a  purely  mathematical  basis,  and  the 
power  of  each  organ  was  carefully  calculated;  that 
exerted  by  the  stomach  in  the  way  of  compression  was 
sufficient  to  destroy  any  living  body,  while  the  force  of 
the  heart  in  driving  the  blood  through  the  system  was 
estimated  by  some  physiologists  to  equal  a  force  of  one 
hundred  and  eighty  thousand  pounds,  while  others 
placed  it  at  less  than  one  pound.  The  Mathematicians 
soon  disseminated  their  doctrines  throughout  all  the 
universities  of  Europe,  superseding  the  theories  of  the 
Chemists. 

This  school  furnished  no  theory  upon  which  to  base 
the  therapeutical  application  of  remedies,  but  busied 
itself  with  physiological  theories. 

It  was  thought  by  many,  after  the  promulgation  of 
the  brilliant  results  achieved  by  Kepler,  Newton  and 
Galileo,  through  the  application  of  mathematical  reason- 
ing to  the  laws  of  the  universe,  that  a  similar  process 
applied  to  the  laws  governing  the  animal  economy 
would  prove  infallible,  and  that  all  the  secrets  of  life 
would  in  like  manner  be  discovered.  It  is  hardly  ne- 
cessary to  add  that  these  brilliant  expectations  were 
never  realized. 


PROGRESS   OF   SURGERY.  73 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Brilliant  Progress  of  Surgery — Evolution  of  Anatomy — Knowl- 
edge of  the  Ancients  upon  this  Subject — Cannibalism — Knowl- 
edge gained  by  Embalming — Prejudices  against  Dissections  by 
the  Jews,  Greeks,  Early  Christians — Roman  Laws  upon  the 
Subject — Rufus  the  Ephesian — Galen — MondinVs  Work  on 
Anatomy — Carpi — Sylvius — Andrew  Vesalius — Michael  Ser- 
vetus — Harvey — Progress  of  Medicine  and  Collateral  Science 
During  the  Remainder  of  this  Century. 

While  practical  medicine  was  languishing  under  the 
baneful  influences  heretofore  enumerated,  surgery,  under 
the  impetus  given  to  it  by  the  revival  of  practical 
anatomy,  was  making  a  brilliant  progress.  A  knowl- 
edge of  practical  anatomy  has  been  regarded  by  in- 
telligent physicians  of  all  ages  as  the  real  foundation 
upon  which  our  entire  structure  must  be  reared,  and 
the  impediments  of  various  kinds  which  had  to  be  over- 
come before  the  study  of  this  necessary  branch  of  the 
art  could  be  prosecuted  form  one  of  the  principal  causes 
why  so  little  progress  was  made  in  medicine  for  so  many 
centuries. 

As  before  stated,  the  dissection  of  human  bodies  was 
legalized  for  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  world, 
at  the  school  of  Alexandria,  about  320  B.C.  Under 
the  protection  and  patronage  of  the  Ptolemies,  Erasis- 
tratus  and  Herophilus  prosecuted  the  study  of  practical 


74  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

anatomy  with  great  energy,  but,  unfortunately,  their 
writings  were  mostly  destroyed,  only  fragments  being 
preserved.  After  the  death  of  these  eminent  men,  and 
their  protectors,  and  the  rapid  spread  of  the  doctrines 
of  the  Empirics,  who  did  not  encourage  the  study  of 
practical  anatomy,  dissections  were  abandoned.  No 
member  of  the  Methodic  school,  although  many  of  them 
were  educated  at  Alexandria,  is  supposed  to  have 
studied  practical  anatomy,  it  having  been  abandoned 
before  this  school  was  founded.  Asclepiades,  the  origi- 
nator of  the  Methodic  school,  who,  it  appears,  like  many 
modern  quacks,  embraced  the  profession  after  having 
failed  in  several  other  departments  of  business,  knew 
little  or  nothing  about  it,  judging  from  his  absurd 
notions  about  invisible  pores  and  corpuscles,  unless  it 
be  conceded  that  he  had  knowledge  of  the  capillary 
vessels  and  the  blood  corpuscle,  which  is  not  at  all 
probable. 

The  evolution  of  anatomy  forms  within  itself  an 
attractive  study.  Some  knowledge  of  anatomy  must 
have  prevailed  in  primeval  times,  for  men  while  in  that 
state  must  have  met  with  various  accidents  and  injuries 
while  engaged  in  conflicts  with  wild  beasts  and  with  one 
another. 

Cannibalism  and  the  custom  of  offering  human  sacri- 
fices, which  at  some  time  during  the  process  of  evolution 
must  have  been  common  with  nearly  all  prehistoric 
nations,  ought  to  have  revealed  some  knowledge  of  this 


PREJUDICES   AGAINST   DISSECTION.  75 

subject.  But,  there  being  no  way  of  transmitting  such 
knowledge,  except  by  tradition,  it  could  not  be  preserved 
for  the  benefit  of  subsequent  ages.  The  process  of  em- 
balming the  dead,  as  practiced  by  the  ancient  Egyptians, 
was  performed  in  such  a  bungling  manner  that  nothing 
of  importance,  even  concerning  the  organs  removed, 
could  be  learned,  the  brain  being  twisted  out  through 
the  nose  with  a  crotchet,  and  the  abdominal  organs  re- 
moved through  a  small  incision  made  in  the  side  with  a 
a  stone  knife.  There  existed  great  prejudice  among 
the  populace  against  even  this  slight  mutilation,  and 
those  performing  it  were  frequently  in  danger  of  violence. 
The  dissection  of  human  bodies  seems  to  have  been  re- 
pugnant to  most  of  the  ancients,  on  account  of  their 
religious  notions. 

The  Jews  believed  that  man,  instead  of  being  the 
image  of  an  ape,  was  made  in  the  image  of  a  God,  and 
consequently,  his  remains  after  death  were  sacred. 
Both  the  Jews  and  the  Arabs,  after  touching  a  corpse, 
were  considered  unclean,  and  had  to  undergo  the  cere- 
monial process  for  correcting  that  condition. 

The  Greeks  believed  that  the  souls  of  the  dead  were 
compelled  to  wander  upon  the  banks  of  the  river  Styx 
until  their  bodies  were  buried. 

No  nation,  however,  ever  opposed  such  formidable 
obstacles  to  practical  anatomy  as  did  the  Christian 
Church,  during  the  first  centuries  of  its  existence.  The 
doctrine  that  the  body  was  to  be  raised  in  the  flesh 


76  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

was  commonly  believed  in  those  days,  and  this  belief 
rendered  its  mutilation  after  death  very  repugnant. 
During  the  first  centuries  of  the  Christian  era  the  dis- 
section  of  human  bodies  was  prohibited,  under  heavy 
penalties.  Some  of  the  popes  issued  bulls  of  excommu- 
nication against  any  person  guilty  of  such  practices,  and 
forbidding  all  good  Christians  from  holding  any  com- 
munications with  them. 

A  Roman  law  forbade  the  use  of  dead  bodies  for  dis- 
section. Rufus,  the  Ephesian,  who  taught  anatomy 
(112  a.d.)  used  animals  for  the  purpose  of  demonstration, 
but  states  in  his  writings  that  "  of  old  human  bodies 
were  used  for  this  purpose." 

Galen  (131-201  a.d.)  dissected  apes,  as  being  more 
like  human  subjects  than  other  animals. 

Not  a  single  subject  was  dissected  by  the  Arabians 
while  medicine  sojourned  with  them.  Some  of  their 
professors,  like  Democritus  of  old  (400  B.C.)  visited  the 
cemeteries  for  the  purpose  of  studying  osteology,  and  in 
this  way  some  of  the  errors  of  Galen  were  corrected. 
But  when  application  was  made  to  the  civil  authorities 
for  permission  to  dissect  fresh  subjects  they  were  in- 
formed that  the  application  of  itself  was  a  violation  of 
the  law. 

Under  the  influences  just  enumerated  there  were  no 
advances  in  practical  anatomy  until  it  was  revived  by 
Mondini,  in  1315  a.d.,  who  demonstrated  it  by  dissec- 
tions before  his  classes,  and  prepared  a  work  upon  the 


VESALIUS.  77 

subject,  which  was  used  as  a  text-book  in  some  parts  of 
Europe  for  nearly  two  hundred  years.  He  declined  to 
open  the  cranium,  for  fear  of  committing  an  unpardon- 
able sin. 

Soon  after  this  several  of  the  universities  once  or 
twice  each  year  had  demonstrations  of  this  kind.  Little 
addition,  however,  was  made  to  the  knowledge  already 
existing  upon  the  subject,  for  the  prosection  was  made 
by  a  barber's  boy,  with  no  other  instrument  than  a 
common  razor,  and  was  necessarily  of  a  clumsy  and 
unskillful  character. 

Illustrious  names,  however,  during  the  two  succeeding 
centuries  began  to  shine  in  this  department,  among  whom 
may  be  mentioned — Beringer  de  Carpi,  Sylvius,  Eusta- 
ehius,  Fabricius,  Michael  Servetus,  Andrew  Vesalius, 
Harvey  and  many  others.  To  give  even  a  brief  account 
of  all  the  discoveries  made  by  this  list  of  distinguished 
names  would  swell  this  essay  to  encyclopedic  proportions. 
I  shall,  therefore,  confine  myself  to  a  short  sketch  of 
two  or  three  of  the  most  important. 

Andrew  Vesalius  was  born  at  Brussels  in  1 514  A.  D.  He 
studied  the  classics  at  Louvain,  and  anatomy  and  medi- 
cine at  Cologne,  Montpellier  and  Paris.  He  was  an 
enthusiast  in  the  study  of  practical  anatomy.  At  a 
very  early  age  he  began  the  dissection  of  animals, 
which  he  prosecuted  with  great  energy.  His  first  human 
skeleton  was  that  of  a  criminal  whose  bones  had  been 
picked  clean  by  birds  of  prey.     He   labored  the  entire 


78  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

night  before  lie  could  free  it  from  the  chains  which 
bound  it  to  the  stake,  but  finally  succeeded  in  carrying 
it  off  in  triumph.  At  Paris  he  was  the  student  of  the 
celebrated  Sylvius,  but  he  was  unable  to  restrain  his 
enthusiasm  for  practical  anatomy,  and  began  his  dissec- 
tions on  his  own  responsibility,  and  is  said  to  have  con- 
tested with  the  dogs  and  vultures  for  the  possession  of 
the  bodies  of  executed  criminals.  He  also  resurrected 
bodies  with  his  own  hand,  in  the  public  cemeteries, 
where  detection  would  have  resulted  in  certain  death, 
for  that  was  the  penalty  affixed  by  law  at  that  time,  for 
such  offenses.  At  the  age  of  twenty  years  he  began  to 
give  private  instructions  in  anatomy  to  his  fellow  stu- 
dents. At  twenty-three  he  was  a  professor,  of  anatomy 
at  Padua,  and  at  twenty-eight  he  published  his  great 
work  on  anatomy,  which  revolutionized  the  science. 
In  this  great  work,  which  was  illustrated  by  drawings 
from  nature,  the  authority  of  Galen,  which  had  not  been 
heretofore  disputed,  was  boldly  assailed,  and  of  course 
provoked  much  angry  discussion,  which  finally  resulted 
in  great  good,  as  practical  dissections  were  everywhere 
appealed  to  in  order  to  settle  the  disputed  points,  and 
the  truth  was  ultimately  arrived  at. 

Vesalius  lectured  on  anatomy  in  Bologna  and  Pisa, 
and  in  1544  A.  d.  was  made  physician  in  chief  to  Charles 
V,  at  Madrid,  having  achieved  a  great  reputation  as  a 
practitioner  as  well  as  an  anatomist.  Here  he  met  with 
an  unfortunate  circumstance  which  caused   his  ruin.     A 


SERVETUS. 


79 


young  Spaniard,  of  noble  birth,  sickened  and  died  under 
his  treatment.     His  relatives  granted  Yesalius  permis- 
sion to  make  a  post-mortem,  and  from  some  unaccount- 
able cause  he  committed  the  serious  blunder  of  opening 
the  body  while  the  heart  was  still  pulsating,  and  the 
friends  became  incensed  and  prosecuted  Vesalius  with 
great  vindictiveness  before  the  Inquisition,  and  had  it 
not  been  for  the  timely  interference  of  Philip  II,  his 
career  would  probably  have  been  brought  to  a  close  at 
that  time.   The  penalty  finally  fixed  upon  was  a  pilgrim- 
age to  the  Holy  Land.    He  arrived  at  Jerusalem  without 
serious  accident,  and  while  sojourning  there  he  received 
notification  of  his  election  to  the  Chair  of  Anatomy  at 
Padua.    In  returning  to  Europe,  he  was  shipwrecked  on 
the  island  of  Zante,  where  he  died,  from  hunger  and 
exposure,  in  1564  A.  D. 

Michael  Servetus,  a  native  of  Spain,  was  somewhat 
of  an  erratic  genius.  At  the  age  of  nineteen  he  left 
his  native  country  and  began  the  study  of  law  at  Tou- 
louse, but  soon  abandoned  it  for  theology;  but  his 
original  way  of  thinking,  together  with  the  argumenta- 
tive character  of  his  mind,  soon  involved  him  in  a 
controversy  with  his  preceptors,  who  denounced  him 
severely.  Owing  to  the  unpleasantness  occasioned  by 
this  discussion,  Servetus  fled  to  Paris,  where  he  began 
the  study  of  medicine,  under  the  direction  of  the  cele- 
brated anatomist,  Sylvius,  where  in  due  time  he  graduated 
with  honor.     He  prosecuted  his  studies  in  medicine  with 


80  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

all  the  energies  he  possessed,  and  was  the  first  to  demon- 
strate the  circulation  of  the  blood  through  the  lungs, 
which  is  the  only  really  valuable  contribution  he  made 
to  the  science.  No  matter  in  what  business  he  engaged 
or  where  he  went  he  seems  to  have  created  a  disturb- 
ance. He  assailed  the  profession  in  general,  and  Galen  in 
particular,  in  a  work  published  in  1537  A.  D.  After  this 
he  mingled  too  much  theology  with  his  medicine,  and 
became  involved  in  a  controversy  with  John  Calvin, 
which  resulted  in  that  eminent  apostle  of  the  Reformation 
having  him  cremated  alive,  October  27th  1553.  Thus 
perished  one  of  the  most  original  thinkers  of  the  six- 
teenth century ;  a  man  who  was  fully  three  centuries  in 
advance  of  the  age  in  which  he  lived ;  a  man  to  whom 
posterity  has  as  yet  failed  to  do  justice  ;  but  as  the  veil 
of  ignorance,  superstition  and  intolerance  which  has  so 
long  obscured  the  intellect  of  the  world  is  lifted — and 
the  time  is  coming — the  name  of  Michael  Servetus  will 
shine  with  brilliant  lustre,  and  that  of  John  Calvin  will 
go  down  to  posterity  steeped  in  the  infamy  it  so  justly 
deserves.  This  tragical  occurrence  ought  to  have  served 
as  a  perpetual  warning  to  the  physicians  of  all  subsequent 
ages  not  to  mingle  too  much  theology  with  their  medi- 
cine; but  unfortunately  it  did  not,  for  we  still  see 
occasionally  a  physician  with  a  bible  in  one  end  of  his 
pill-bags. 

William  Harvey  was  born  at  Folkstone,  in  Kent,  in 
1578  A.  r>.     He  received  a  fine  classical  education,  after 


HARVEY.  81 

which  he  studied  medicine  at  the  University  of  Padua, 
under  the  tuition  of  Fabricius,  and  Julius  Casserius,  and 
other  famous  teachers  attached  to  this  school,  which  at 
that  time  was  one  of  the  most  celebrated  in  the  world. 
After  graduating  with  honor  he  returned  to  England 
in  1602  A.  d.   In  1609  he  was  appointed  physician  to  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and  in  1615,  Lumleian   lec- 
turer at  the  College  of  Physicians,  which  position  he 
held  for  forty-one  years.     During  the  early  portion  of 
his  career  as  a  lecturer  he  began  to  demonstrate  his  dis- 
covery of  the  circulation  of  the  blood  to  his  classes,  but 
did  not  publish  it  to  the  world  until  about  ten  years 
later.     This  was  the  most  important  discovery  of  the 
age,  and  marks  the  beginning  of  a  new  era  in  anatomy 
and  physiology,  and  opened  up  the  way  to  other  inves- 
tigations of  great  importance  to  the  science.     Strange  to 
say  this  discovery  met  with  the  most  violent  opposition, 
especially  from  the  older  members  of  the  profession. 
The  rising  generation  generally  espoused  the  cause  of 
Harvey  and  truth.   It  was  fully  twenty-five  years  before 
all  opposition  was  silenced.     Harvey  also  made  a  valu- 
able contribution  to  the  then  existing  knowledge  on  the 
subject  of  generation.     He  occupied  a  conspicuous  place 
in  the  profession,  having  been  chosen,  in  addition  to  his 
other  honors,  physician  to  Charles  I.  whom  he  accom- 
panied during  his  campaigns. 

Harvey  was  devoted  to  his  profession,  bequeathing 
nearly  all  his  property  to  his  favorite  institution,  the 


82  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

College  of  Physicians.  He  died  of  gout,  June  3d,  1657. 
The  progress  of  anatomy,  physiology  and  chemistry 
during  the  remainder  of  this  and  the  eighteenth  century 
was  remarkably  rapid.  Previously  physiology  had 
occupied  a  subordinate  position,  owing  to  its  intimate 
association  with  the  Chemical  and  Mechanical  sects, 
but  now  both  physiology  and  chemistry  were  rapidly 
advanced  to  their  proper  rank  in  the  sciences;  but  the 
most  brilliant  discoveries  in  both  these  departments  were 
reserved  for  the  nineteenth  century. 


THE  EXPECTANT  SCHOOL.  83 


CHAPTER  X. 

Progress  of  Medicine  During  the  Close  of  the  Seventeenth  Cen- 
tury and  the  First  Half  of  the  Eighteenth — New  Schools 
Founded  Upon  Improvements  in  Physiology  During  this 
Period — Expectant  School — Ernest  Stahl — Principles  and 
Practice  of  this  School — Hoffman's  System — Boerhaave — 
Cullen's  System — The  Brunonian  System — The  Last  of  the 
Dogmatic  Schools. 

During  the  closing  years  of  the  seventeenth  century 
and  the  first  half  of  the  eighteenth,  when  physiology 
was  still  overburdened  with  theoretical  speculations, 
there  arose  several  new  systems  of  medicine,  which 
seemed  to  be  a  natural  outgrowth  of  the  imperfect 
knowledge  of  this  science,  and  upon  which  they  were 
principally  based ;  and  as  these  theories  still  exert  some 
influence  in  the  profession  it  will  be  necessary  to  notice 
them  briefly  ;  although  the  rapid  advance  made  in  the 
sciences  soon  exploded  them  as  separate  systems  of 
medicine. 

The  first  one  of  these  which  claims  our  attention  is 
the 

EXPECTANT    SCHOOL, 

which  was  founded  upon  the  doctrines  of  George  Ernest 
Stahl,  who  was  born  at  Ainspach  in  1 660  A.  D.  He  studied 
medicine  at  the  University  of  Jena,  and  in  1694  was 
chosen  professor  of  medicine,  anatomy  and  chemistry  at 


84  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

the  newly  established  University  of  Halle.  In  1716 
he  was  appointed  physician  to  the  King  of  Prussia,  and 
removed  to  Berlin,  where  he  died  in  1734. 

Stahl's  system  seems  to  have  been  founded  upon  a  union 
of  a  physiological  theory,  mostly  borrowed  from  Van 
Helmont,  and  the  psychological  doctrines  of  Descartes. 

The  gist  of  the  system  is  that  there  is  a  mysterious 
force  which  resides  in  the  body,  and  which  is  inde- 
pendent of  and  superior  to  matter.  This  force,  which 
he  calls  the  anima  or  soul,  not  only  forms  the  body,  but 
presides  over  it  and  directs  all  its  functions,  either  con- 
sciously or  unconsciously,  and  being  subject  to  error  by 
nature,  this  anima,  by  abnormal  action  originates  dis- 
eases, which  are  cured  by  the  functional  activity  of  the 
organs;  and  further,  that  this  force  is  sufficient  to 
accomplish  said  cure  without  artificial  aid.  This  theory 
laid  the  foundation  for  the  expectant  plan  of  treatment, 
which  has  exerted  a  noxious  influence  in  some  por- 
tions of  the  medical  world  ever  since  its  promulgation. 
His  theories  were  extensively  indorsed  in  some  parts  of 
Europe,  and  continued  to  govern  the  practice,  especially 
in  France,  for  a  number  of  years.  He  held  that  plethora 
and  anaemia  were  the  principal  causes  of  disease,  arid 
that  in  their  treatment  art  should  not  be  resorted  to 
until  after  Nature  had  failed,  and  even  then  it  should  be 
so  used  as  to  fulfill  the  indications  of  the  latter.  The 
expectant  plan  of  treatment  will  be  referred  to  in  treat- 
ing of  another  branch  of  the  subject. 


BOERHAAVE.  85 

Frederick  Hoffman,  a  contemporary  of  Stahl,  born  in 
the  same  year  (1660  A.  d.),  and  a  professor  in  the  same 
university  (Halle),  achieved  a  great  reputation  as  a  prac- 
titioner and  amassed  a  large  fortune,  I  am  sorry  to 
record,  a  considerable  portion  of  which  was  from  the  sale 
of  secret  remedies.  The  system  of  Hoffman  was  rather 
vague  and  indefinite,  and  was  based  upon  the  supposed 
influence  which  the  nervous  system  exerts  in  the  pro- 
duction of  disease,  coupled  to  which  was  a  humoral 
pathology,  some  form  of  which  seemed  to  prevail  almost 
everywhere  at  that  time.  His  greatest  work,  which  he 
was  twenty  years  in  preparing,  was  published  at  Halle, 
in  1740,  in  nine  volumes,  under  the  title  of  A  RaHonal 
System  of  Medicine. 

Neither  one  of  the  preceding  professors  exerted  such 
a  powerful  influence,  however,  as  Hermann  Boerhaave, 
one  of  the  most  celebrated  physicians  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  He  was  born  at  Voorhout,  near  Leyden,  in 
1668  a.d.  He  received  a  classical  education,  with  a  view 
of  becoming  a  clergyman.  He  was  master  of  the  Greek, 
Latin  and  Hebrew  languages,  together  with  their  litera- 
ture. He  received  his  degree  of  Doctor  of  Philosophy 
at  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  and  began  the  study  of 
medicine,  reading  carefully  the  works  of  Hippocrates 
from  among  the  ancients,  and  Sydenham  among  the 
moderns.  He  received  his  Doctor's  degree  at  Harder- 
wyck,  at  the  age  of  twenty-four  years,  and  returned  to 
Leyden,  where,  at  the  age  of  twenty-nine  years,  he  was 


86  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

appointed  lecturer  on  the  Theory  of  Medicine.  At 
different  times  he  filled  the  chairs  of  Chemistry,  Botany, 
and  Practical  Medicine,  enriching  them  all  in  turn. 
He  published  several  works  in  which  his  system  is  ex- 
plained. He  contributed  extensively  toward  establish- 
ing what  is  familiarly  known  to  all  physicians  as  the 
Humoral  Pathology,  and  is  ingeniously  compounded 
from  physics,  chemistry  and  physiology.  As  this  system 
is  familiar  to  almost  everybody,  it  is  dismissed  without 
further  notice. 

Boerhaave  achieved  greater  fame  during  his  lifetime 
than  usually  falls  to  the  lot  of  man.  The  celebrity  of 
philosophers,  poets,  authors  and  artists  is  frequently 
posthumous;  but  Boerhaave,  long  prior  to  his  death, 
was  celebrated  as  a  great  physician  all  over  the  civilized 
world.  Peter  the  Great  of  Russia  is  said  to  have  been 
at  one  time  his  patient.  A  Chinese  mandarin  addressed 
a  letter  to  "  Herr  Boerhaave,  Celebrated  Physician, 
Europe,"  which  in  due  time  was  received  by  him. 

The  three  preceding  systems  were  founded  upon  the 
imperfect  knowledge  of  physiology  existing  at  the  time, 
and  as  rapid  advances  were  made  during  this  historical 
period  in  this  science,  they  were  soon  modified  or  super- 
seded by  other  systems  more  in  harmony  with  the  im- 
proved condition  of  the  science ;  and  especially  was  this 
the  case  after  the  publication  of  Haller's  great  work  on 
Human  Physiology  (1757-1766). 

William  Cullen,  one  of  the  most  celebrated  physicians 


CULLEN.  87 

of  the  last  century,  was  born  at  Lanarkshire,  in  1710  A.D. 
He  was  educated  at  the  University  of  Glasgow,  and 
studied  medicine  with  Dr.  Paisley,  a  very  highly  edu- 
cated and  liberal-minded  man,  who  possessed  a  valuable 
library,  of  which  young  Cullen  doubtless  made  good  use. 
He  was  also  the  friend  and  companion  of  Dr.  William 
Hunter,  they  having  spent  three  years  under  the  same 
roof.  He  graduated  in  Medicine  at  Glasgow,  in  1741. 
He  was  a  close  student  and  an  untiring  laborer  in  his  pro- 
fession during  his  whole  life.  He  lectured  upon  the 
various  subjects  connected  with  medicine  for  several 
years,  at  the  Glasgow  University,  until  he  was  called  to 
Edinburgh,  to  accept  a  position  in  the  faculty  of  that 
University.  He  filled  several  positions 'in  the  faculty 
of  this  institution  at  different  times,  but  was  not  ad- 
vanced to  the  one  he  was  best  qualified  to  adorn  until 
1773,  when  he  was  chosen  professor  of  theory  and  prac- 
tice.    He  died  in  1790. 

In  Cullen's  time  the  medical  world  was  distracted  by 
the  prevailing  systems  of  Stahl,  Hoffman  and  Boerhaave. 
Not  being  satisfied  with  either,  he  proceeded  to  inaugu- 
rate a  system  of  his  own,  which  was  compounded  from 
Haller's  theory  of  irritability  and  Hoffman's  theory  of 
nervous  influence  in  the  production  of  disease.  His 
principal. objection  to  StahPs  system  was  on  account  of 
the  expectant  practice  which  it  encouraged.  Yet  he 
placed  a  very  high  estimate  upon  the  Vis  Medicatrix 
Naturce,  which  is  the  same  thing,  viewed  from  a  different 


88  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

standpoint,  as  Stahl's  Anima  or  Rational  Soul,  or  Hoff- 
man's Nervous  Influence,  or  the  Animal  Spirits  of  Galen, 
and  the  principle  called  Nature  by  Hippocrates. 

John  Brown,  the  founder  of  the  Brunonian  system 
of  medicine,  was  born  in  Bunkle  Parish,  Berwickshire, 
in  1735  a.d.,  and  was  educated  at  the  grammar-school  of 
Dunse.  He  studied  medicine  at  the  University  of 
Edinburgh,  and  was  for  a  number  of  'years  tutor  to 
the  children  of  the  famous  Dr.  Cullen,  and  also  his 
assistant  in  his  course  of  lectures  at  the  University.  He 
became-  highly  offended  at  some  imaginary  slight  put 
upon  him  by  Cullen,  and  immediately  began  lecturing 
upon  a  new  system  of  medicine  of  his  own. 

Brown's  system  was  founded  upon  what  he  called 
"  Excitability,"  which  he  did  not  attempt  to  explain. 
He  regarded  man  as  a  kind  of  machine  which  responded 
to  certain  stimulants,  and,  consequently,  life  was  a  forced 
condition.  He  divided  diseases  into  twTo  great  classes : 
those  of  a  sthenic  and  those  of  an  asthenic  character, 
the  former  of  which  were  to  be  treated  with  depressing 
remedies,  and  the  latter  with  stimulants.  This  was 
equivalent  to  opening  up  another  royal  road  to  the  study 
of  medicine,  which  bid  fair  to  eclipse  that  of  the  ancient 
Methodics,  who  boasted  of  their  ability  to  teach  the 
whole  art  in  six  months. 

The  only  thing  required  in  Brown's  system  was  for  a 
practitioner  to  be  able  to  decide  to  which  class  of  diseases 
his  cases  belonged,  and  treat  them  accordingly.     And 


BROWN.  89 

as  nearly  all  diseases  were  considered  as  asthenic,  and 
consequently  required  stimulants,  the  treatment  was 
indorsed  generally  by  the  patient,  because  it  gratified 
his  appetite.  Such  a  system  will  always  find  followers 
in  the  profession,  because  it  encourages  indolence  and 
requires  little  hard  study.  Brown  was  an  attractive 
lecturer,  and  gained  a  considerable  following  in  a  very 
short  time;  but  his  course  was  essentially  meteoric,  a 
brilliant  flash  across  the  medical  horizon,  followed  by 
death  in  darkness.  He  died  in  London,  of  intemper- 
ance, in  1788. 


90  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 


CHAPTER  XL 

Concluding  Bemarhs  on  Ancient  Dogmatism — Medicine  and 
Philosophy — Materia  Medica  of  the  Ancients. 

From  the  earliest  period  of  which  we  have  any 
knowledge  of  medicine  down  to  the  close  of  the  eight- 
eenth century,  certain  prominent  characters  have  at- 
tempted to  formulate  general  principles  upon  which  to 
base  systems  which  it  was  hoped  would  be  sufficient  to 
explain  all  the  various  phenomena  connected  therewith, 
and  at  the  same  time  furnish  indications  upon  which  the 
treatment  of  all  diseases  might  be  based.  This  gave  rise 
to  the  various  sects,  schools  or  systems  in  medicine  which 
have  appeared  from  time  to  time  in  its  history,  begin- 
ning with  the  Dogmatic,  400  B.C.,  and  ending  with  the 
Brunonian,  about  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century  A.D. 

After  the  failure  of  Brown's  system  no  further  at- 
tempt was  made  to  establish  a  school  of  medicine  upon 
any  specific  dogma,  with  the  exception  of  several  minor 
systems  of  quackery.  With  the  death  of  dogmatism 
begins  the  Rational  age  in  the  history  of  medicine.  A 
very  brief  summary  of  the  principles  upon  which  the 
various  ancient  dogmatic  schools  were  founded  has  been 
given,  without  any  discussion  of  the  contemporaneous 
systems  of  philosophy  upon  which  they  are  based. 

Medicine,  during  this  entire  period,  was  continually 


ANCIENT   MATERIA   MEDICA.  91 

shifting  its  features,  in  order  to  conform  as  nearly  as 
possible  to  the  prevailing  systems  of  philosophy. 

I  have  also  avoided  as  much  as  possible  the  discussion 
of  the  materia  medica  of  the  ancients  or  their  treatment 
of  special  diseases,  which  in  many  instances  was  pecu- 
liarly absurd,  or  even  disgusting,  and  of  no  particular 
interest,  only  to  the  antiquarian.  All  kinds  of  substances 
were  used  as  medicines,  animal,  vegetable  and  mineral. 
Those  drawn  from  the  animal  kingdom  form  the  most 
disgusting  portion  of  the  materia  medica,  which  consisted 
of  the  flesh  of  lizards,  crocodiles,  vipers,  the  brains  of 
wolves,  the  heads  of  mice,  the  bodies  of  moles,  the  livers, 
lungs,  blood  and  organs  of  generation  of  animals,  etc. 
This  would  not  have  been  so  bad,  but  they  used  the 
excrements  of  various  animals,  both  internally  and  ex- 
ternally. The  entire  bodies  of  patients  were  frequently 
anointed  with  cow-manure,  for  numerous  diseases ;  and 
poultices  of  mashed  spiders  were  bound  to  the  temples  ; 
and  the  heart  of  the  hare  was  worn  upon  the  back  of  the 
neck,  for  the  cure  of  malarious  intermittents.  However 
disgusting  and  irrational  these  external  applications  may 
appear  to  the  intelligent  people  of  to-day,  they  were 
doubtless  as  effective  in  relieving  disease  as  the  patent 
plasters  and  absorbing  liver  pads  which  are  patronized 
by  the  idiots  of  the  present  generation.  Newly-born 
puppies  were  boiled  and  eaten,  for  the  purpose  of  pre- 
serving the  patient  from  attacks  of  colic  during  the 
remainder  of  his  days,  and  a  great  many  similar  absurdi- 


92  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

ties.  Yet  it  will  be  seen,  by  consulting  some  of  their 
earliest  works  on  this  subject,  that  the  ancients  were  not 
deficient  in  materials  for  use  in  medicine.  Theophrastus, 
who  was  a  pupil  and  contemporary  of  both  Plato  and 
Aristotle,  and  president  of  the  Lyceum  at  Athens 
for  thirty-five  years,  was  the  author  of  eighteen  books 
relating  to  the  various  departments  of  botany,  and  is  the 
first  of  the  ancients  whose  works  on  this  subject  have 
been  transmitted  to  us.  They  are  more  valuable,  how- 
'  ever,  to  the  botanist  than  the  physician.  He  died  at 
Athens  (287  B.C.),  at  the  advanced  age  of  one  hundred 
and  seven  years. 

The  most  valuable  work  of  the  ancients  upon  the 
subject,  and  from  which  nearly  all  subsequent  authors 
have  copied  largely,  is  that  of  Dioscorides,  who  is  supposed 
to  have  flourished  in  the  first  or  second  century,  a.d.  He 
accompanied  the  Roman  armies  as  physician,  on  many  of 
their  campaigns,  during  which  time  he  collected  a  great 
store  of  information  upon  the  medicinal  qualities  of 
plants,  which  he  afterwards  composed  into  a  work  on 
materia  medica.  This  work  formed  the  real  foundation  of 
the  science,  and  has  been  accepted  as  such  for  nearly  fifteen 
centuries.  He  enumerated  in  his  work  on  this  subject 
958  articles  which  were  used  as  medicines.  This  is  more 
than  double  the  number  of  officinal  preparations  now  in 
use.  Of  these  substances,  700  were  plants,  90  were 
composed  of  minerals,  and  168  were  drawn  from  the 
animal  kingdom. 


ANTIDOTES.  93 

The  Arabian  physicians  followed  Dioscorides  closely, 
his  works  having  been  translated  into  their  language. 

Rhazes  describes  in  his  writings  765  articles  of  the 
materia  niedica,  and  Avicenna  about  750,  but  Eben 
Baithar  expands  his  materials  until  the  number  reached 
1400.  This  would  simply  be  appalling  to  a  modern 
student  of  medicine.  The  number  of  articles  used  in 
medicine  has  been  curtailed  materially  in  modern  times. 
Many  substances  upon  which  the  ancients  placed  great 
value  have  been  ascertained  to  be  almost  inert,  while 
others  are  now  considered  valuable  as  articles  of  food, 
which  were  formerly  used  as  medicines  only.  In  this 
way  the  number  of  the  materials  used  has  been  lessened 
greatly  and  about  everything  of  little  or  no  value  has 
been  weeded  out,  while  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  everything 
of  much  consequence  has  been  retained. 

Some  few  medicines  of  great  value  have  been  handed 
down  from  the  ancient  Egyptians,  who  used  them,  with- 
out doubt,  before  the  beginning  of  the  historical  period. 
The  Arabians  contributed  several  valuable  articles  to  the 
materia  medica,  which  will  continue  to  be  used  as  long  as 
the  science  exists.  In  fact,  this  department  has  been 
enriched  all  along  the  line.  What  seems  to  us  most 
absurd  was  the  peculiar  manner  in  which  the  ancients 
compounded  their  medicines,  under  the  general  name  of 
antidotes,  which  were  composed  of  numerous  ingredients 
mixed  together,  apparently  without  any  view  to  their 
specific  action,  and  of  which  almost  every  practitioner 


94  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

seems  to  have  concocted  one  for  himself,  which  he  pre- 
scribed for  almost  every  diseased  condition.  This  was 
particularly  the  case  with  the  celebrated  composition, 
called  Theriac,  which  consisted  of  nearly  one  hundred  and 
fifty  ingredients,  even  a  list  of  which  would  be  too  long 
for  this  essay,  without  describing  the  method  of  com- 
pounding it.  I  must  say,  however,  that  four  or  five 
vipers  entered  into  this  composition,  and  that  they  had 
to  be  of  a  tawny  color,  recently  taken,  and  after  their 
heads  had  been  removed  and  four  finger-breadths  cut 
from  their  tails,  to  be  boiled,  after  removing  the  skin 
and  entrails,  until  the  flesh  dropped  from  the  bones,  be- 
fore they  were  ready  to  be  mixed  with  the  other  ingre- 
dients. After  this  preparation  had  been  compounded 
according  to  the  directions,  which  I  have  not  quoted,  for 
want  of  space,  it  was  to  be  kid  up  in  silver  or  glass 
vessels,  not  quite  full,  and  the  covers  taken  off  every  day. 
In  case  of  great  emergency,  when  a  person  had  been 
bitten  by  a  venomous  animal,  or  taken  poison  of  any  sort, 
or  in  case  any  pestilential  disease  made  its  appearance, 
this  medicine  will  have  acquired  sufficient  virtues  to  be 
used  in  seven  years  after  it  is  compounded;  but  in  all 
other  cases  it  will  not  have  matured  sufficiently  for  use 
until  ten  years  have  elapsed ;  and  it  is  said  to  retain  its 
virtues  for  a  period  of  forty  years. 

This  celebrated  medicine  was  not  dropped  from  the 
British  Pharmacopoeia  until  about  one  hundred  and  twen- 
ty-five years  ago,  and  then  it  was  rejected  by  one  majority 


THEEIAC.  95 

only,  in  a  vote  of  twenty-seven.  There  was  an  immense 
number  of  these  antidotes  in  use,  one  authority,  Myrep- 
sus,  giving  formulae  for  compounding  over  five  hundred 
of  them.  None  of  them,  however,  contained  as  many 
ingredients  as  the  Theriac. 


9G  MEDICAL   HEEESIES. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Homoeopathy,  as  Taught  by  Hahnemann. 

The  principles  of  the  various  ancient  dogmatic  systems 
of  medicine,  with  few  exceptions,  were  adopted  and 
taught  by  the  contemporary  schools  and  colleges.  The 
progress  of  medicine  was  essentially  slow;  its  strides 
were  centennial,  it  required  centuries  to  abolish  an  error 
or  institute  a  reform.  The  Dogmatic  school,  which  was 
formed  by  the  immediate  followers  of  Hippocrates,  about 
the  year  400  B.C.,  was  without  a  rival  for  113  years, 
when  the  Empiric  school  was  instituted  by  Philinus 
and  his  disciples,  287  B.C.  This  school  divided  the 
honors  and  emoluments  of  the  profession  with  the  Dog- 
matics until  about  the  middle  of  the  century  immediately 
preceding  the  Christian  era ;  then  arose  the  Methodics, 
which,  with  its  subdivisions,  the  Eclectics  and  Pneumat- 
ics, together  with  the  two  former,  continued  to  flourish 
until  the  coming  of  Galen,  who  was  born  131  A.D. 

Galen  revived  and  revised  Dogmatism,  and  im- 
pressed it  so  firmly  upon  the  medical  world,  that  it 
required  fifteen  centuries  to  loosen  its  shackles.  The 
more  modern  schools,  owing  to  the  revival  of  letters  and 
the  advancement  made  in  the  science  of  physiology  and 
chemistry,  were  short-lived.  The  systems  of  Stahl,  Hoif- 
man,  Boerhaave,  Cullen  and  Brown  soon  melted  away 


HOMOEOPATHY.  97 

under  the  influence  of  our  better  knowledge  of  these 
sciences,  and  no  further  attempts  to  establish  a  system 
upon  the  basis  of  a  specific  dogma  ever  had  any  extensive 
following  in,  or  succeeded  in  capturing  the  medical 
department  of,  any  college  or  university;  and  although 
homoeopathy,  which  was  founded  by  Hahnemann  in  the 
earlier  years  of  the  present  century,  had  a  considerable 
number  of  adherents,  it  never  succeeded  in  gaining  a 
foothold  in  any  of  the  universities.  Nearly  a  quarter 
of  a  century  elapsed  before  it  was  introduced  into  this 
country;  its  progress  at  first  was  rather  slow;  but  it  has 
at  present  among  its  disciples  numerous  and  respectable 
teachers  and  practitioners,  who  are  highly  cultured  gen- 
tlemen, and  who  have  established  schools  and  hospitals 
in  all  the  principal  cities  in  the  Union. 

For  a  long  time  homoeopathy  was  assailed  by  ridicule 
only,  by  the  regular  medical  profession  ;  yet  it  has  con- 
tinued to  thrive  upon  it.  However,  the  illusion,  for  such  it 
is,  is  entitled  to  more  serious  consideration  ;  its  fallacies 
ought  to  be  met  and  discussed  according  to  the  ordinary 
rules  applied  to  scientific  investigations.  This  I  pro- 
pose to  do,  by  first  showing  what  homoeopathy  was,  as 
taught  bv  Hahnemann,  with  the  scientific  objections 
thereto ;  and  secondly,  what  homoeopathy  is  now.  This 
plan  will  necessarily  give  rise  to  some  repetition,  but  as 
little  will  be  indulged  in  as  is  compatible  with  a  full 
statement  and  discussion  of  the  subject.  Homoeopathy, 
although   originally  a   strictly   Dogmatic   school,   with 


98  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

certain  fixed  principles  promulgated  by  Hahnemann,  is 
now  divided  into  several  different  sects,  about  as  follows: 
1st.  Pure  homoeopathists,  who  believe  that  the  law  of 
similars  is  the  only  therapeutic  law,  and  that  high  dilu- 
tions and  triturations,  which  have  been  properly  dynam- 
ized, constitute  the  only  proper  medicines  to  be  used. 
2d.  Those  who  believe  that  the  law  of  similars  is  the  only 
law,  but  use  either  high  or  low  dilutions.  3d.  Those  who 
believe  that  the  law  of  similars  is  not  universal,  although 
a  law,  and  consequently  use  high  and  low  dilutions,  and 
occasionally  doses  of  the  crude  drugs. 

Samuel  Hahnemann,  the  originator  of  the  Homoeopathic 
school  of  medicine,  was  born  at  Meissen,  a  small  village 
near  Dresden,  the  capital  of  Saxony,  in  1755  a.d.  His 
father  designed  him  to  follow  the  same  occupation  as 
himself,  he  being  a  painter  of  Dresden  china ;  but  young 
Hahnemann  displayed  such  an  ardent  desire  for  letters 
that  this  design  was  abandoned, and  he  was  permitted  to 
attend  the  small  college  of  his  native  village  gratuitously, 
until  he  was  twenty  years  of  age.  He  then  went  to 
Leipsic,  taking  his  entire  fortune,  which  consisted  of 
forty  crowns,  with  him,  where  he  began  the  study  of 
medicine.  Pie  not  only  paid  his  entire  expense  while  at 
this  place,  by  translating  Latin,  French  and  English 
works  into  German,  but  actually  saved  enough  to  enable 
him  to  visit  Vienna,  where  he  completed  his  medical 
studies.  He  returned  to  Dresden  in  1784,  where  he 
remained  for  five  years,  being  a  portion  of  the  time  in 


HAHNEMANN.  99 

charge  of  a  large  hospital.     In   1789  he  returned  to 
Leipsic.     In  1790  he  translated  Cullen's  Materia  Medica 
from  the  English  into  the  German,  and  while  engaged 
in  this  translation  he  was  struck  with  the  insufficiency 
of  the  explanations  of  the  modus  operandi  of  cinchona 
bark  in  curing  ague,  and  it  occurred  to  him  to  take  a 
large  dose,  in  order  to  see  what  the  effect  would  be  on 
the  healthy  body.     In  a  few  days  he  had  well  marked 
symptoms  of  ague ;  and  he  concluded  that  the  reason  why 
cinchona  cures  ague  is,  because  it  has  the  power  to  pro- 
duce symptoms  in  a  healthy  person  similar  to  those  of 
ague.     Hahnemann  spent  several  years  in  studying  and 
elaborating  this   subject,  and,  in    1797,   published    an 
article  in  Huf eland's  Journal,  proposing  to  apply  this 
principle  to  the  discovery  of  the  proper  medicine  for 
every  form  of  disease.     He  published,  in  1808,  his  great 
work,  the  Organon,  which  has  been  translated  into  all 
the   European   languages  and   also    the   Arabic.      The 
principles  of  homoeopathy  are  fully  explained  in  this  book. 
From  1810  to  1821  he  was  engaged  in  publishing  his 
works  on   materia  medica,  giving  descriptions  of  the 
action  of  medicines  upon  persons  in  health. 

The  homoeopathic  system  requires  the  administration 
of  medicines  singly,  or  but  one  remedy  at  a  time,  and  in 
very  minute  doses.  This  was  against  the  interest  of  the 
apothecaries,  and  they  prosecuted  him,  under  the  law 
which  forbade  physicians  dispensing  their  own  medicines, 
and  he  was  compelled  to  leave  Leipsic. 


100  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

By  special  invitation  of  the  Grand  Duke  of  Anhalt- 
Kothen,  in  1821  he  took  up  his  residence  at  Kothen, 
where  he  continued  to  reside  for  fourteen  years.  While 
at  this  place  he  prepared  several  new  volumes  of  his 
Or^anon  and  works  on  materia  medica.  In  1835  he 
removed  to  Paris,  where  he  enjoyed  a  great  reputation 
until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  1843. 

"  Si77iilia  similibas  curantur"  or  diseases  are  cured  by 
remedies  which  have  the  power  of  exciting  a  similar  train 
of  symptoms  in  the  healthy  body  to  the  disease  to  be 
treated,  is  the  leading  principle  of  homoeopathy.  The 
law  of  similars  requires  that  only  one  medicine  shall  be 
administered  at  a  time,  and  not  until  it  has  been  proven; 
i.e.  thoroughly  tested  by  being  administered  to  a  healthy 
pharmacometer,  and  the  symptoms  produced  thereby 
carefully  noted.  This  originally  was  all  there  was  of 
homoeopathy,  Hahnemann  having  promulgated  this  law 
of  similars,  and  put  it  into  practice  by  way  of  experi- 
ment, several  years  before  he  saw  the  necessity  of  infinit- 
esimal doses.  He  was  soon  convinced  that  remedies 
administered  in  sensible  quantities,  according  to  this 
law,  usually  coincided  with  the  disease,  and  in  place  of 
benefiting  the  patient  nearly  always  aggravated  the 
symptoms.  In  fact,  it  was  taught  afterward  by  Hahne- 
mann, and  is  the  accepted  doctrine  of  pure  homoeopath ists, 
that  a  well  chosen  remedy  of  the  thirtieth  attenuation  is 
capable  of  producing  aggravations.  This  statement  is 
clearly  proven  by  reports  of  his  own  cases,  one  of  which 


/ 


ATTENUATIONS.  101 

is  of  particular  interest,  and  was  reported  in  Huf eland's 
Journal,  in  1797.  This  was  a  case  of  cholera  morbus, 
for  which  he  prescribed  veratrum  album,  a  drug  which 
has  a  violent  emeto-cathartic  action,  and,  of  course,  coin- 
cided with  and  aggravated  the  disease ;  but  the  patient 
reacted,  and  actually  recovered,  triumphing  over  both 
disease  and  maltreatment.  But  Hahnemann,  with  that 
strange  inconsistency  with  which  many  of  his  conclusions 
are  characterized,  regarded,  or  pretended  to  regard,  the  re- 
sult in  this  case  a  complete  vindication  of  the  law  of  similars. 

When  this  case  was  reported  he  had  been  elaborating 
and  perfecting  this  system  for  about  seven  years,  and 
had  gone  too  far  to  recede.  He  had  staked  his  all  on 
the  truth  of  the  proposition,  "  Sim  ilia  similibus  curan- 
tur."  To  retreat  was  impossible.  He  wras  compelled  to 
move  forward,  but  had  to  add  a  new  principle;  and  thus 
came  about  high  dilutions  and  triturations.  This  prin- 
ciple is  not  one  of  the  results  growing  out  of  his  spirit- 
like dynamic  pathology;  that  was  an  afterthought,  and 
manufactured  in  order  to  comply  with  the  transcendental 
basis  of  his  therapeutics ;  a  sort  of  logical  necessity.  The 
law  of  similars  had  been  promulgated  several  years 
before,  but  experience  and  observation  had  taught  him 
that  medicine  could  not  be  prescribed  in  sensible  quan- 
tities in  accordance  with  this  law.  Hence  the  attenua- 
tions followed. 

It  has  been  the  rule  with  all  schools  of  medicine,  and 
will  continue  to  be  so  for  all  time,  that  the  therapeutical 


102  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

application  of  remedies  is  based  upon  the  pathological 
conditions  known  to  be,  or  supposed  to  be,  present  in  the 
case  to  be  treated.  Hahnemann  having  announced  his 
law  of  similars,  and  in  accordance  therewith  having  been 
forced  into  high  dilutions  and  triturations,  and  recogniz- 
ing the  absurdity  of  treating  the  material  pathological 
changes  which  take  place  in  diseases  with  such  attenu- 
ated remedies,  was  compelled,  I  repeat,  to  manufacture 
an  attenuated  pathology,  which  is  explained  in  the 
Organon  about  as  follows: — 

Disease  consists  of  a  disordered  condition  of  the  vital, 
spirit-like,  or  dynamic  force  of  the  body,  which  manifests 
itself  by  certain  disordered  sensations  or  symptoms,  the  to- 
tality of  which  constitutes  the  disease  or  thing  to  be  treated. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  Hahnemann  elevated  his 
pathology  above  anything  material,  and  placed  it  upon 
the  same  dynamic  plane  occupied  by  his  therapeutics. 
This  transcendental  pathology  is  emphatically  insisted 
upon  in  the  Organon,  as  we  will  show  by  a  few  quota- 
tions from  Wesselhoeft's  translation  of  Hahnemann's 
principal  work,  which  is  the  one  used  in  the  preparation 
of  this  essay. 

" Diseases  will   not  cease  to  be 

(spiritual)  dynamic  aberrations  of  our  spirit-like  life, 
manifested  by  sensations  and  actions;  that  is,  they  will 
not  cease,  for  the  sake  of  those  foolish  and  groundless 
hypotheses,  to  be  immaterial  modifications  of  our  sensorial 
condition  (health).  These  causes  of  our  diseases  cannot 
be  material  ones (What  nosologist  ever 


TRANSCENDENTAL   PATHOLOGY.  103 

beheld  with  bodily  eyes  such  morbific  matter,  that  he 
should  speak  so  confidently  of  it,  and  make  it  the  basis 

of  a  medical  procedure?) Even  if  some 

material  substance,  brought  in  contact  with  the  skin  or 
a  wound,  had  propagated  diseases  by  infection,  who  can 
prove  (as  has  often  been  asserted  in  our  works  on  path- 
ogeny) that  some  material  particle  of  that  substance  had 
mingled  with,  or  had  been  absorbed  by,  the  juices  of  our 
body? " 

"  Is  it  possible  to  admit  the  existence  of  material 
morbific  matter  and  its  transition  into  the  blood  in  this 
and  all  such  cases?  A  letter  written  in  the  sick  room, 
and  sent  a  great  distance,  has  often  imparted  to  the 
recipient  the  same  miasmatic  disease.  Can  material 
morbific  matter  be  thought  of  in  this  case  as  having: 
permeated  the  humors  of  the  body  ?  " 

4< That  no  disease  (unless  occasioned 

by  entirely  indigestible  or  other  hurtful  matter,  swal- 
lowed or  lodged  in  the  primse  viae  or  other  apertures  and 
cavities  of  the  body,  or  caused,  e.  g.,  by  a  foreign  sub- 
stance penetrating  the  skin)  can  be  derived  from  the 
presence  of  any  material  substance,  but  that  each  disease 
is  always  and  only  a  special,  virtual  and  dynamical 
discordancy  of  our  sensorial  condition  (health).     .     .  "  * 

"  In  sickness  this  spirit-like,  self-acting  (automatic) 
vital  force,  omnipresent  in  the  organism,  is  alone 
primarily  deranged  by  the  dynamic  influence  of  some 
morbific  agency  inimical  to  life.  Only  this  abnormally 
modified  vital  force  can  excite  morbid  sensations  in  the 
organism,  and  determine  the  abnormal  functional  activity 
which  we  call  disease.  This  force,  itself  invisible,  be- 
comes perceptible  only  through  its  effects  upon  the  organ- 
ism, makes  known,  and  has  no  other  way  of  making 
known,  its  morbid  disturbance  to  the  observer  and  phy- 
sician than  by  the  manifestation  of  morbid  feelings  and 
functions ;  that  is,  by  symptoms  of  disease  in  the  visible 
material  organism "f 

*  Pages  23,  24  and  25  of  the  Organon.     f  Page  68  of  the  Organon. 


104  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

"§12.  Diseases  are  produced  only  by  the  morbidly 
disturbed  vital  force • 

"  §  13.  Hence,  disease  (not  subject  to  the  manual  skill 
of  surgery),  considered  by  allopathists  as  a  material  thing 
hidden  within,  but  distinct  from,  the  living  whole  (the 
organism  and  its  life-giving  vital  force),  is  a  nonentity, 
however  subtile  it  is  thought  to  be."  * 

Hahnemann  and  his  followers  attached  so  much  im- 
portance to  their  belief  in  the  nonentity  of  disease,  that 
they  attempted  to  obliterate  the  nomenclature  of  disease 
as  used  by  the  physicians  of  former  times,  and  in  speak- 
ing of  any  particular  case  they  would  not  say  the  patient 
had  the  rheumatism,  gout  or  typhoid  fever,  but  would 
proceed  to  enumerate  the  "totality  of  symptoms"  as 
manifested  by  the  disordered  sensations  in  the  case,  as 
the  proper  thing  to  do. 

Hahnemann  discouraged  investigations  with  a  view 
of  ascertaining  the  causes  of  disease,  and  even  ridiculed 
the  older  physicians  for  efforts  made  in  that  direction, 
saying :  "  They  fancied  they  could  find  the  cause  of  dis- 
ease, but  they  did  not  find  it,  because  it  is  unrecognizable 
and  not  to  be  found,  since  by  far  the  greater  number  of 
diseases  are  of  a  dynamic  (spirit-like)  origin  and  nature  ; 
their  cause,  therefore,  remaining  unrecognizable."  He 
also,  in  the  same  paragraph,  reproves  the  old  school 
physicians  for  studying  practical  and  pathological  ana- 
tomy, as  well  as  physiology,  and  censures  them  for  the 
conclusions  drawn  from  a  study  of  the  subject,  thus  indi- 
*Page  08  of  the  Organon. 


HOMOEOPATHIC   LAW   OF   CURE.  105 

eating  rather  plainly  that  he  did  not  approve  of  the 
study  of  those  necessary  branches  of  medicine,  which  is 
perfectly  consistent  with  his  views  of  the  nature  of  dis- 
ease ;  for  if  disease  consists  of  disordered  vital  force,  and 
is  to  be  prescribed  for  simply  in  accordance  with  the 
totality  of  symptoms,  a  knowledge  of  these  branches  is 
certainly  not  necessary. 

".SIMILIA  SIMILIBUS  CURANTUR." 

In  order  to  effect  a  homoeopathic  cure  an  artificial 
drug-disease  must  be  substituted,  which  must  be  similar 
to  but  stronger  than  the  natural  disease.  This  artificial 
affection,  after  overcoming  the  natural  disease,  will  itself 
yield  to  the  vital  force,  and  thus  leave  the  organism  free 
from  disease.  This  law  is  crystallized  into  the  expres- 
sion "Similia  similibus  curantur,"  and  is  considered 
by  homoeopathists  as  the  most  important  principle  upon 
which  their  system  is  founded. 

Before  a  medicine  can  be  prescribed  in  accordance 
with  the  law  of  similars,  it  is  necessary  that  it  should  be 
proved.  For  this  purpose  the  article  to  be  tested  is 
administered  to  perfectly  healthy  persons,  who  are  to 
observe  a  carefully  prescribed  diet  and  regimen  during 
the  process,  and  observe  carefully  all  the  pathogenetic 
symptoms  which  appear  while  under  its  influence. 

DILUTIONS. 

High  dilutions  and  triturations  also  form  an  important 
part  of  the  principles  of  homoeopathy,  and  are  rendered 
necessary  because  medicines  prescribed  in  sensible  quan- 


106  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

tides,  according  to  the  law  of  similars,  always  produce 
an  aggravation  of  the  symptoms  in  direct  proportions  to 
the  quantity  administered. 

"Although  a  homoeopath ically  selected  remedy,  by 
virtue  of  its  fitness  and  minuteness  of  dose,  quietly 
cancels  or  extinguishes  an  analogous  disease,  without 
manifesting  any  of  its  unhomceopathic  symptoms  —  that 
is  to  say,  without  exciting  additional  perceptible  sen- 
sations—it will,  nevertheless,  as  a  rule  (or  in  the  course 
of  a  few  hours)  produce  a  slight  aggravation,  resembling 
the  original  disease  so  closely  that  the  patient  actually 
considers  it  as  such * 

"  §  158.  This  slight  homoeopathic  aggravation  during 
the  first  hours  is  quite  in  order,  and  in  case  of  an  acute 
disease,  generally  serves  as  an  excellent  indication  that 
it  will  yield  to  the  first  dose.  The  drug-disease  must 
naturally  be  somewhat  more  intense,  in  order  to  over- 
come and  extinguish  the  natural  diseases;  so  it  is  only 
by  superior  intensity  that  one  natural  disease  can  ex- 
tinguish another  of  similar  nature."  f 

"§159.  The  smaller  the  dose  of  the  homoeopathic 
remedy,  so  much  the  smaller  and  shorter  is  the  apparent 
aggravation  of  the  disease  during  the  first  hours."  J 

"A  physician  accustomed  to  close  observation  will  ex- 
perience no  great  difficulty  in  distinguishing  aggravation 
from  improvement." 

It  is  claimed  bv  Hahnemann  and  his  followers  that 
during  the  process  of  dilution,  trituration  and  agitation, 
these  medicines  so  treated  have  imparted  to  them 
a  dynamic  power  or  force  which  is  not  possessed  by  them 
as  material  agents,  and  that  this  potentiality  is  increased 
by  the  number  of  shakings,  as  well  as  the  dilutions. 

"Desirous  of  employing  a  certain  rule  for  the  devel- 

*  Page  139  of  the  Organon.      f  Page  140  of  the  Organon. 
%   Page  174  of  the  Organon. 


POTENTIATING.  107 

opcaent  of  powers  of  fluid  medicines,  I  have  been  led 
by  manifold  experiences  and  accurate  observations  to 
prefer  two  instead  of  repeated  strokes  of  succussion  for 
each  vial,  since  the  latter  method  tended  to  potentiate 

the  medicines  too  highly I  dissolved 

one  grain  of  soda  in  half  an  ounce  (1  Loth.)  of  water 
mixed  with  a  little  alcohol  contained  in  a  vial,  two- 
thirds  of  which  it  filled  ;  after  shaking  this  solution 
uninterruptedly  for  half  an  hour,  it  was  equal  in 
potentiation  and  efficacy  to  the  thirtieth  development 
of  strength."  * 

It  is  conceded  by  Hahnemann  that  these  medicines 
act  by  their  dynamic  power  only,  and  not  as  physical 
or  chemical  agencies,  and  that  diseases,  being  of  a  spirit- 
like nature,  cannot  be  reached  in  any  other  way  than  by 
a  dynamic  force. 

"  Our  vital  force,  that  spirit-like  dynamis,  cannot  be 
reached  nor  affected  except  by  a  spirit-like  (dynamic) 
process,  resulting  from  the  hurtful  influences  of  hostile 
agencies  from  the  outer  world  acting  upon  the  healthy 
organism,  and  disturbing  the  harmonious  process  of  life. 
Neither  can  the  physician  free  the  vital  force  from  any 
of  these  morbid  disturbances,  i.  e.,  diseases,  except  like- 
wise by  spirit-like  (dynamic,  virtual)  alterative  powers 
of  the  appropriate  remedies  acting  upon  our  spirit-like 
vital  force."  f 

These  dilutions  are  prepared  as  follows  :  A  strong  solu- 
tion is  first  made,  called  the"  mother  tincture."  One  drop 
of  this  tincture  is  agitated  with  ninety -nine  drops  of  al- 
cohol, which  is  called  the  first  dilution,  and  marked  No.  1. 
One  drop  of  this  number  one  dilution  is  again  agitated 
with   ninety-nine  drops  of  alcohol  and   marked  No.  2, 

*Page  221  of  the  Organon.         fPage  69  of  the  Organon. 


108  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

and  so  on  up  to  the  30tli,  which  is  the  highest  power 
recommended  by  Hahnemann,  although  some  of  his 
followers  have  continued  them  to  the  1000th  potency. 

Great  care  must  be  used  in  the  preparation  of  dilu- 
tions, or  their  dynamic  force  will  be  increased  so  as  to 
render  their  use  dangerous.  Hahnemann  recommended 
that  they  should  be  shaken  but  twice,  while  some  of  his 
disciples  use  twelve  powerful  strokes.' 

"  Finding  that  our  30th  gave  good  satisfaction  to 
physicians,  we  concluded  to  make  in  like  manner  High 
Potencies,  that  is,  prepare  them  by  hand,  with  pure 
alcohol,  giving  each  potency  twelve  powerful  strokes. 
We  have  thus  carried  up  over  250  remedies  to  the  200th, 
150  to  the  500th,  and  100  to  the  1000th  potency."  * 

"  Finding  a  bottle  of  the  29th  dilution  of  Plumb,  ac. 
dried  up,  the  cork  loose  and  dry,  the  idea  occurred  to 
him  (Jenichen)  to  potentize  from  the  bottle  up  to  the 
200th.  A  patient  affected  with  hereditary  fetid  perspi- 
ration of  the  feet,  smelt  once  of  a  few  globules  saturated 
with  this  potency,  and  in  a  few  days  was  permanently 
cured.     (Pentseh.)" 

"Dr.  Hering,  who  is  the  acknowledged  authority  on 
this  point,  confirms  this  statement  of  Rentsch,  and 
explains  further  that  the  high  potencies,  i.  e.,  up  to  800, 
are  made  iu  bottles  four  and  a  half  inches  long  and 
weighing  one-half  ounce.  Each  potency  gets  twelve 
strokes.  The  highest  potencies — from  900  upward — are 
made  in  bottles  weighing  eighteen  ounces,  including  the 
contents.  Each  potency  gets  thirty  strokes.  The 
vehicle  used  is  the  water  of  Lake  Schwerin.  .  .  His 
regular  proportion  of  medicine  to  vehicle  for  the  high 
potencies  is  1-300,  for  the  highest  potencies  2-1200. 
Ever  since  Jenichen  had  found  the  Plumb,  ac.200  (made 
from  the  dried-up  bottle  of  Plumb,  ac.29)  so  efficient  in 

*From  Boerick  &  Tufel's  Catalogue  and  Price  Current 


TRITURATION.  109 

the  cure  of  offensive  foot-sweat,  he  made  all  the  high 
potencies  of  the  earths  and  minerals,  as  also  some  others, 
from  evaporated  phials."  * 

"  In  addition  to  this,  it  must  be  remembered  that  the 
power  of  homoeopathic  medicine  is  augmented  (potenti- 
ated) by  friction  and  succession  at  each  successive  divi- 
sion and  comminution.  This  development  of  powers, 
unknown  before  my  time,  is  so  great,  that  in  latter 
years  convincing  experience  has  led  me  to  make  use 
of  two  succussions  after  each  dilution,  where  formerly 

1  employed  ten."  f 

The  strength  of  these  dilutions  is  as  follows  : — 

No.  1  contains  the  one  hundredth  part  of  a  drop.    No. 

2  the  one  ten  thousandth  part  of  a  drop.  No.  3  the  one 
millionth  part  of  a  drop.  No.  6,  the  one  billionth  ;  and 
No.  30,  the  one  decillionth  part  of  a  drop. 

If  the  substance  is  insoluble  it  is  to  be  treated  as 
follows  : — 

One  grain  of  the  substance  is  to  be  triturated  witli 
ninety-nine  grains  of  sugar  of  milk  and  marked  No.  1. 
And  in  the  same  manner  one  grain  of  No.  1  is  to  be 
triturated  with  ninety-nine  grains  of  sugar  of  milk,  in 
order  to  form  trituration  No.  2  ;  and  so  on  up  to  tritu- 
ration No.  5  or  6,  when,  according  to  a  supposed  new 
chemical  law  claimed  to  have  been  discovered  by  Hahne- 
mann, all  substances  become  soluble,  and  the  attenuations 
are  continued  by  dilutions  in  alcohol,  as  in  the  case  of 
the  mother  tincture. 

Minute  pellets  of  sugar  of  milk  are  saturated  with 

*  Medical  Counsellor,  Chicago,  April,  1880. 
f  Page  222  of  the  Organon. 


110  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

these  solutions,  varying  in  strength  from  the  one  hun- 
dredth to  the  decillionth  part  of  a  drop  or  grain.  This 
constitutes  the  armamentarium  of  the  homoeopathic  physi- 
cian as  he  goes  out  to  conquer  the  world  of  disease. 

As  thin  as  these  solutions  and  triturations  seem  to  be, 
and  as  little  account  as  they  are  known  to  be  as  physical 
forces,  to  all  scientists,  the  patient  does  not  always  receive 
the  full  effect,  if  any,  that  might  be  derived  from  their 
proper  administration,  for  they  are  sometimes  adminis- 
tered by  olfaction,  even  for  the  cure  of  the  most  inveterate 
diseases,  as  will  be  shown  by  the  following: — 

"In  case  of  a  sudden  derangement  of  the  stomach, 
marked  by  constant  and  offensive  eructations,  tasting  of 
tainted  food,  and  usually  accompanied  by  depression  of 
spirits,  cold  hands  and  feet,  the  efforts  of  the  ordinary 
practitioner  have  been  directed  altogether  against  the 
vitiated  contents  of  the  stomach,  using  active  emetics  to 
effect  their  complete  expulsion."  * 

After  criticising  this  practice  severely,  he  says  further : 

"  But,  if  in  the  place  of  using  such  powerful  and  in- 
jurious evacuants,  the  patient  will  apply  but  once,  by 
olfaction,  the  highly  diluted  juice  of  pulsatilla  (smelling 
of  a  globule  no  larger  than  a  mustard  seed,  moistened 
with  the  same),  it  will  relieve  the  derangement  of  his 
condition  in  general,  and  that  of  his  stomach  in  particu- 
lar, and  restore  him  in  two  hours,  f 

"  [149]  §  288.  Homoeopathic  remedies  will  act  with 
the  greatest  certainty  and  efficacy,  particularly  by  smell- 
ing or  inhaling  them  in  the  form  of  vapor  emanating 
continually  from  a  dry  pellet  impregnated  with  a  highly 
rarefied  medicinal  solution,  and  contained  in  a  small 
vial.     The    homoeopathic    physician    should    apply  the 

*  Page  48  of  the  Organon.  *  Page  224  of  the  Organon. 


MEDICATION   BY   OLFACTION.  Ill 

mouth  of  the  vial  first  to  one  nostril  of  the  patient,  and 
request  him  to  inhale  the  air  from  the  vial;  and  if  the 
dose  is  to  be  somewhat  stronger,  the  vial  should  also  be 
applied  to  the  other  nostril,  the  patient  inhaling  more  or 
less  vigorously,  in  proportion  to  the  intended  strength 
of  the  dose,  whereupon  the  vial  should  be  replaced,  well- 
corked,  in  his  pocket-case,  to  prevent  abuse.     Hence  the 
physician  may  dispense  entirely  with  the  services  of  an 
apothecary,  if  he  chooses  to  do  so.     Globules  (of  which 
teny  twenty  or  a  hundred  weigh  a  grain)  moistened  with 
the  thirtieth  potentiated  dilution,  and  then  dried,  retain 
their  full  strength  undiminished  for  at  least  eighteen  or 
twenty  years  (as  far  as   my  experience  reaches),  even  if 
the  vial  had  been   opened  a  thousand  times,  provided, 
however,  it  had  been  well  protected  from  heat  and  sun- 
light.    In  case  the  patient's  nostrils  were  obstructed  by 
coryza  or  polypus,  he  should  inhale  through  the  mouth 
while  holding  the  aperture  of  the  vial  between  his  lips. 
A  certain  result  may  be  obtained  in  the  case  of  infants 
by  holding  the  vial  close  to  their  nostrils  during  sleep. 
The  inhaled  medicinal  vapor  comes  into  immediate  con- 
tact with- the  nerves  distributed  over  the  parietes  of  the 
cavities,  through  which  it  passes,  and  thus  stimulates  the 
vital  force  into  curative  action  in  the  mildest,  but  at  the 
same  time,  in  the  most  energetic  manner.     This  is  much 
superior  to  all  other  modes  of  administering  medicines 
by  the  mouth.     Every  kind  of  internal  chronic  disease 
not  entirely  ruined  by  allopathy,  as  well  as  the  most 
acute  diseases  that  can  be  cured  at  all  by   homoeopathy 
(what,  indeed,  cannot   be   cured  by  it,  except  surgical 
diseases  requiring  manual  skill  ?),  are  most  surely  and 
effectually  cured    by  this  process  of  olfaction.     But  of 
the  great  number  of  patients  who,  for  a  year  past,  have 
sought  my  aid  and  that  of  my  assistant,  there  is  scarcely 
onewhose  chronic  or  acute  disease   we  had  not  treated 
successfully  alone  by  means  of  olfaction.     During  the 
latter  half"  of  this  year  I  became  convinced  of  the  fact 
(which  T  would  not  have  believed  before),  that  by  this 
process  of  olfaction  the  power  of  the  medicine  is  exerted 


112  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

upon  the  patient,  at  least  in  the  same  degree  of  intensity, 
and,  in  fact,  more  quietly,  though  quite  as  long  as  that 
of  a  large  dose  of  medicine  administered  by  the  mouth, 
and  that,  consequently,  the  process  of  olfaction  is  not  to 
be  repeated  at  shorter  periods  than  if  the  medicine  were 
given  in  material  doses  by  the  mouth.  * 

"Even  patients  deprived  of  their  sense  of  smell  are 
influenced  and  cured  in  an  equally  perfect  manner  by 
inhaling  medicinal  vapor  through  the  nose."  f 

Although  these  homoeopathic  doses  are  so  exceedingly 
small  as  to  escape  the  most  minute  search  for  their  pres- 
ence, the  doctrine  is  plainly  taught  in  the  Organon,  that 
it  is  derogatory  to  the  best  interests  of  the  patient  to 
administer  a  second  dose  until  after  the  first  has  ceased 
to  act,  which,  in  some  cases,  is  a  period  of  several  days, 
as  will  be  shown  by  foot-note  126,  page  213,  of  the  Or- 
ganon, which  we  will  insert  here. 

"  In  the  former  editions  of  the  Organon  I  have 
recommended  that  a  single  dose  of  a  well-selected 
homoeopathic  remedy  should  be  allowed  to  terminate  its 
operation  before  the  same  or  a  new  remedy  is  repeated, 
a  doctrine  derived  from  the  certain  experience  that  the 
greatest  amount  of  good  can  scarcely  ever  be  accomplished, 
particularly  in  chronic  diseases,  by  a  large  dose  of  medi- 
cine (a  retrogressive  measure  recently  proposed),  how- 
ever well  selected  ;  or,  what  amounts  to  the  same  thing, 
by  several  small  doses  administered  in  rapid  succession, 
because  a  procedure  of  this  kind  will  not  permit  the 
vital  force  to  undergo  imperceptibly  the  change  from  the 
natural  disease  to  the  similar  drug  disease.  On  the  con- 
trary, it  is  usually  excited  to  violent  revulsive  action  by 
one  large  dose,  or  by  the  quick  succession  of  several 
smaller  doses,  so  that  the  reaction  of  the  vital  force,  in 
most  cases,  is  anything  but  beneficial,  doing  more  harm 

*Page  224  of  the  Organon.  f  Page  225  of  the  Organon. 


NON-REPETITION   OF  DOSE.  113 

than  good.  Therefore,  while  it  was  impossible  to  dis- 
cover a  more  salutary  method  than  the  one  proposed  by 
me,  it  was  necessary  to  obey  the  philanthropic  rule  of 
precaution,  si  non  juvat,  modo  ne  noceat;  in  accordance 
with  which  maxim  the  homoeopathic  physician,  consid- 
ering human  welfare  to  be  his  highest  aim,  was  to  ad- 
minister but  one  most  minute  dose  at  a  time  of  a  care- 
fully selected  medicine  in  a  case  of  disease,  to  allow  this 
dose  to  act  upon  the  patient,  and  terminate  its  action.  I 
say  most  minute,  since  it  holds  good,  and  will  continue  to 
hold  good  as  an  incontrovertible  homoeopathic  rule  of 
cure,  that  the  best  dose  of  the  correctly  selected  medi- 
cine will  always  be  the  smallest  in  one  of  the  high  po- 
tencies (X)  for  chronic  as  well  as  for  acute  diseases  ;  a 
truth  which  is  the  invaluable  property  of  pure  homoeo- 
pathy, and  which  will  continue  to  stand  as  an  imperish- 
able barrier  to  shield  true  homoeopathy  from  quackery 
(Afterkiinste)  as  long  as  allopathy  (and  no  less  the  prac- 
tice of  the  modern  mongrel  sect  composed  of  a  mixture 
of  allopathy  and  homoeopathy)  continues  like  a  cancer 
to  undermine  the  life  of  suffering  men,  and  to  destroy 
them  by  large  doses  of  medicine. 

"On  the  other  hand,  practice  proves  to  us  that  a  single 
small  dose  may  be  sufficient,  particularly  in  light  cases 
of  disease,  to  accomplish  nearly  all  that  could,  for  the 
present,  be  expected  from  the  medicine,  especially  in  the 
case  of  infants  and  very  tender,  susceptible  adults.  It 
also  becomes  evident  that  in  many,  nay,  in  most  cases  of 
very  protracted  and  inveterate  diseases  (often  aggravated 
by  previous  inappropriate  drugs),  as  well  as  in  serious 
acute  affections,  such  a  minute  dose,  even  of  our  highly 
rarefied  medicines,  will  be  insufficient  to  produce  all  the 
curative  effects  that  might,  in  general,  be  expected  to 
result  from  the  medicine.  Hence  it  may  undoubtedly 
be  found  necessary  to  administer  several  doses  of  the 
same  medicine  for  the  purpose  of  altering  pathogeneti- 
cally  the  vital  force  to  such  an  extent,  and  to  raise 
its  curative  reaction  to  such  a  degree  of  tension,  as  to 
enable  it  to  extinguish  completely  an  entire  portion  of 


114  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

the  original  disease,  as  far  as  this  object  could  be  reached 
by.  any  well-selected  homoeopathic  remedy.  The  best  se- 
lected medicine,  in  a  single  small  dose,  would  perhaps 
bring  some  relief  in  such  cases,  but  far  from  enough. 

"  A  careful  homoeopathic  physician  would  scarcely  dare 
to  repeat  the  dose  of  the  same  remedy  again  and  again, 
since  no  advantage  was  ever  gained  by  such  a  course, 
but,  on  accurate  observation,  certain  disadvantages  have 
most  frequently  been  seen  to  follow.  Exacerbations 
have  been  commonly  noticed,  even  after  the  smallest  dose 
of  the  most  appropriate  remedy,  whenever  it  was  re- 
peated for  two  or  three  successive  days. 

"A  homoeopathic  physician,  convinced  of  the  homoeo- 
pathic fitness  of  his  chosen  remedy,  and  desirous  of  re- 
lieving his  patient  in  a  shorter  time  than  he  had  hitherto 
succeeded  in  doing  by  means  of  a  single  small  dose, 
naturally  arrives  at  the  conclusion  that,  as  long  as  a  sin- 
gle dose  is  to  be  administered  (for  reasons  detailed  above), 
this  dose  might  as  well  be  increased ;  and  that  instead 
of  a  single  fine  pellet  moistened  with  the  highest  attenu- 
ation, six,  seven  or  eight  pellets,  or  even  whole  drops  of 
the  dilution  might  be  given  at  once.  But  unexception- 
ally  the  result  was  less  favorable  than  it  should  have 
been  ;  often  it  was  actually  injurious  and  detrimental — 
an  evil  difficult  to  repair  in  a  patient  treated  in  that 
manner. 

"  Neither  will  low  potencies  of  the  remedy,  in  large 
doses,  lead  to  a  better  result. 

"  Experience  teaches  that  the  desired  object  will  never 
be  gained  by  increasing  the  single  doses  of  a  homoeopathic 
medicine  for  the  purpose  of  raising  the  pathogenetic  ex- 
citement of  the  vital  force  up  to  the  point  of  sufficient 
curative  action.  The  vital  force  would  be  too  violently 
and  too  suddenlv  affected  and  aroused,  than  that  it  could 
have  time  to  prepare  for  a  gradual,  even,  and  salutary 
counter-action ;  hence  it  endeavors  to  throw  off  the  sur- 
plus of  the  medicinal  assailant  by  vomiting,  diarrhoea, 
fever,  perspiration,  etc.  Thus  the  object  of  the  inconsid- 
erate physician  is,   in  a  great  measure,  placed  out  of 


INTERVAL   BETWEEN   DOSES.  115 

reach,  or  entirely  frustrated.  Little  or  nothing  is  accom- 
plished toward  the  cure  of  the  disease ;  on  the  contrary, 
the  patient  is  visibly  weakened,  and  for  a  long  time  a 
repetition,  even  of  the  smallest  dose  of  the  same  remedy, 
is  not  to  be  thought  of,  lest  it  should  have  an  undesirable 
effect  upon  the  patient. 

"A  number  of  small  doses,  repeated  for  the  same  pur- 
pose in  quick  succession,  will  accumulate  in  the  organism 
till  they  constitute,  as  it  were,  one  large  dose,  and  will 
produce  the  same  evil  result,  except  in  some  rare  in- 
stances. The  vital  force,  unable  to  recover  during  the 
interval  even  between  small  doses,  is  overtasked  and 
overpowered,  incapacitated  to  begin  curative  reaction, 
and  compelled  to  continue  passively  the  predominant 
drug-disease  forced  upon  it.  This  process  is  similar  to 
that  produced  by  the  large  and  accumulating  allopathic 
doses  of  a  drug,  resulting  in  protracted  injury  to  the 
patient,  an  event  we  are  daily  called  upon  to  witness. 

"  Now,  in  order  to  avoid  the  errors  here  pointed  out,  to 
gain  the  desired  object  with  greater  certainty  than  be- 
fore, and  to  administer  the  selected  remedy  in  such  a 
manner  that  it  may  do  the  greatest  amount  of  good  to 
the  patient  without  injury,  and  finally,  in  order  that,  in 
a  given  disease,  the  medicine  may  accomplish  as  much 
as  could  possibly  be  expected,  I  have  recently  adopted  a 
peculiar  course. 

"  I  perceived  that,  in  order  to  pursue  the  correct  medium 
course,  we  should  be  guided  by  the  nature  of  the  differ- 
ent medicines,  as  well  as  by  the  bodily  constitution  of 
the  patient,  and  the  magnitude  of  his  disease.  Let  us 
take,  for  example,  the  use  of  Sulphur  in  chronic  (psoric) 
diseases;  its  finest  dose  (Tinct.  Sulph.  X°),  even  in  the 
case  of  robust  persons  afflicted  with  developed  psora,  is 
rarely  to  be  repeated  with  advantage  oftener  than  once 
in  seven  days;  this  space  of  time  must  be  extended  still 
more  in  the  treatment  of  weakly  and  susceptible  patients, 
when  it  will  be  well  to  administer  such  a  dose  only  once 
in  nine,  twelve,  or  fourteen  days,  to  be  repeated  until  the 
medicine  ceases  to  be  serviceable.     In  such  cases  it  will 


116  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

be  found  that  in  psoric  diseases  rarely  less  than  four,  but 
often  six,  eight,  and  even  ten  such  doses  (Tinct  Sulph. 
X°),  administered  successively  at  such  intervals,  are  re- 
quired for  the  complete  extinction  of  that  portion  of  the 
chronic  disease,  which  sulphur  (to  continue  the  example) 
is  capable  of  extinguishing,  provided  no  allopathic  abuse 
of  sulphur  had  occurred  previously.  In  this  manner,  a 
newly  originated  (primary)  itch-eruption  attacking  a  suffi- 
ciently robust  person,  and  even  if  it  had  extended,  over  the 
whole  body,  can  be  cured  in  ten  or  twelve  weeks  by  admin- 
istering every  seven'h  day  a  dose  of  tinct.  sulph.  X°  (that 
is,  with  ten  or  twelve  globules) ;  nor  will  it  often  be 
necessary  to  make  use  of  a  few  doses  of  carbo  veg.  X° 
(also  at  the  rate  of  one  dose  a  week) ;  the  cure  may,  there- 
fore, be  perfected  without  the  least  external  treatment, 
excepting  frequent  change  of  linen  and  well-regulated 
regimen. 

"  Although  from  eight  to  ten  doses  of  tinct.  sulph.  X° 
may  be  generally  considered  as  sufficient  in  other  great 
chronic  diseases,  it  is,  nevertheless,  preferable,  instead  of 
applying  the  doses  in  uninterrupted  succession,  to  give  a 
dose  of  another  medicine  which,  next  to  sulphur,  is  most 
homoeopathic  to  the  case  (generally  hep.  sidph.)  after 
each,  or  after  every  second  or  third  dose  of  the  latter ; 
and  to  allow  this  new  dose  to  operate  from  eight  to 
fourteen  days  before  a  second  series  of  three  doses  of 
sulphur  is  again  resorted  to. 

"Not  infrequently  the  vital  force  is  indisposed  to  sub- 
mit to  the  action  of  several  successive  doses  of  sulphur, 
even  at  the  stated  intervals,  and  however  well  the  medi- 
cine may  have  been  adapted  to  the  chronic  evil,  the 
repugnance  of  the  vital  power  will  be  indicated  by  some 
moderate  sulphur  symptoms,  which  appear  during  the 
treatment.  In  this  case  it  is  sometimes  advisable  to  give 
a  small  dose  of  mix  vom.  X°,  and  to  permit  this  to  act 
from  eight  to  ten  days,  so  that  nature  may  again  become 
disposed  to  allow  sulphur  in  continued  doses  to  act 
quietly  and  with  beneficial  result.  In  some  cases  Pul- 
satilla X°  is  to  be  preferred. 


INTERVAL    BETWEEN    DOSES.  117 

"  If  sulphur  had  been  alio  path  ically  misapplied  (even 
several  years  before),  the  vital  force  will  resist  the  effects 
of  that  medicine,  though  decidedly  indicated;  in  that 
case  even,  visible  aggravations  of  the  chronic  disease  will 
be  manifested  by  the  vital  force,  after  the  smallest  dose 
of  sulphur,  nay  even  after  smelling  of  a  pellet  moistened 
with  tinct.  sulph.  X.  This  is  a  deplorable  circumstance, 
which  renders  the  best  medical  treatment  almost  useless; 
and  still  it  is  only  one  out  of  numerous  instances  of 
allopath  ically  maltreated  chronic  diseases,  for  which, 
however,  we  possess  some  means  of  reparation. 

"In  such  cases  it  is  merely  necessary  to  let  the  patient 
apply  one  pellet,  moistened  with  mercur.  metal  1.  X  to 
his  nostrils,  and  to  take  a  deep  inspiration  through  the 
nose  (stark  riechen  lassen),  and  to  let  this  dose,  applied 
through  olfaction,  operate  for  nine  days,  in  order  to  make 
the  vital  force  again  susceptible  of  the  beneficial  effects 
of  sulphur  (at  least  by  smelling  of  tinct.  sulph.  X°,  a 
discovery  for  which  we  are  indebted  to  Dr.  Griesselich, 
of  Carlsruhe). 

"  Of  the  other  antipsoric  remedies  (perhaps  excepting 
Phoshp.  X)  fewer  doses  are  to  be  given  at  similar  inter- 
vals (Sepia  and  Silicea  are  to  be  given  at  longer  intervals, 
where  they  are  homoeopath  ically  indicated,  without 
intercurrent  remedies),  in  order  to  distinguish  all  that 
the  indicated  remedy  is  capable  of  curing.  Hepar  sulph. 
calc.  is  rarely  to  be  administered,  internally  or  by  olfac- 
tion, in  shorter  periods  than  fourteen  or  fifteen  days. 

"  As  a  matter  of  course,  the  physician  should  be  fully 
convinced  of  the  accuracy  of  his  selection  of  the  remedy 
before  attempting  a  repetition  of  doses. 

"  In  acute  diseases  the  time  for  the  repetition  of  the 
proper  remedy  is  regulated  by  the  rate  at  which  the 
disease  runs  its  course ;  here  it  may  often  be  necessary 
to  repeat  the  medicine  in  twenty-four,  sixteen,  twelve, 
eight,  four  hours,  and  less,  while  the  medicine,  without 
originating  new  complaints,  continues  to  produce  un- 
interrupted improvement ;  but  where  this  improvement 
is  not  sufficiently  marked,  considering   the   dangerous 


118  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

rapidity  of  the  acute  disease,  the  interval  must  be  still 
further  lessened.  Thus  in  cases  of  cholera,  the  most 
rapidly  fatal  disease  known  to  us,  it  is  necessary  in  the 
beginning  to  give  one  or  two  drops  of  a  weak  solution 
of  camphor  every  five  minutes,  in  order  to  insure  speedy 
and  certain  relief;  while  in  the  more  developed  stages 
we  may  be  called  upon  to  employ  doses  of  cuprum, 
veratrum,  phosphorus,  etc.  (X°),  every  two  or  three 
hours;  or  to  give  arsenicum,  carbo  veg.,  etc,  at  similar 
intervals. 

"  In  the  treatment  of  so-called  nervous  fevers  and 
other  continued  fevers,  the  repetition  of  the  dose  of  the 
effective  medicine  is  also  governed  by  the  foregoing 
rules. 

"In  pure  syphilitic  diseases  I  have  commonly  found 
one  dose  of  metallic  mercury  (X°)  to  be  sufficient.  But 
not  infrequently  two  or  three  doses,  administered  at 
intervals  of  six  or  eight  days,  were  necessary  whenever 
the  least  complication  with  psora  was  visible. 

"  In  cases  where  one  remedy  or  another  was  strongly 
indicated,  but  where  the  patient  is  very  excitable  and 
weak,  the  application  of  a  remedy  by  olfaction  is  more 
efficacious  and  safe  than  the  administration  of  a  sub- 
stantial dose  of  homoeopathic  medicine,  however  fine  and 
highly  potentiated.  This  is  done  by  holding  the  mouth 
of  the  vial,  containing  one  small  globule  moistened  with 
the  medicine,  first  to  one  nostril,  and  if  the  dose  is  to  be 
still  more  efficacious,  also  to  the  other  nostril  of  the 
patient,  who  takes  a  momentary  inspiration,  the  effect 
of  which  continues  quite  as  long  as  that  of  the  sub- 
stantial doses;  hence  this  process  of  olfaction  is  not  to 
be  repeated  at  shorter  intervals  than  if  the  medicine  had 
been  given  in  substantial  form." 

The  absurdity  of  these  remarkable  views  of  Hahne- 
mann in  regard  to  sulphur  will  be  appreciated  by  those 
who  know  that  with  each  meal  more  sulphur  is  taken 
into  the  system  than  all  the  homoeopathic  physicians  in 


VIS   MEDICATRIX   NATURiE   IGNORED.  119 

the  world  ever  prescribed  of  this  remedy  when  raised 
to  the  thirtieth  potency. 

It  is  claimed  in  the  Organon,  that  when  the  totality 
of  symptoms  is  removed  by  treatment  the  disease  is 
cured : — 

"  In  effecting  a  cure,  the  inner  change  of  vital  force, 
forming  the  basis  of  disease,  that  is  the  totality  of 
disease,  is  always  canceled  [8]  by  removing  the  entire 
complex  of  perceptible  signs  and  disturbances  of  the 
disease.  Hence  it  follows  that  the  physician  has  only 
to  remove  the  entire  complex  of  symptoms,  in  order  to 
cancel  and  obliterate  [9]  simultaneously  the  internal 
change ;  that  is,  the  morbidly  altered  vital  force,  the 
totality  of  the  disease,  in  fact,  the  disease  itself.     .     .     . 

"  It  is  then  unquestionably  true  that,  besides  the 
totality  of  symptoms,  it  is  impossible  to  discover  any 
other  manifestation  by  which  diseases  could  express  their 
need  of  relief.  Hence  it  undeniably  follows  that  the 
totality  of  symptoms  observed  in  each  individual  case 
of  disease  can  be  the  only  indication  to  guide  us  in  the 
selection  of  a  remedy."  * 

No  reliance  was  placed  on  nature  by  Hahnemann,  but 
the  cures  effected  by  him  were  attributed  entirely  to  the 
influence  of  medicinal  agents  employed.  This  invalu- 
able force,  so  highly  prized  by  all  rational  physicians, 
was  denominated  by  Hahnemann  as  "  rude"  and  "  in- 
stinctive," devoid  of  reason,  and  not  to  be  relied  upon. 

"How  could  the  old  school,  calling  itself  rational, 
be  justified  in  choosing  this  unintelligent  vital  force, this 
blind  guide,  as  its  best  instructor  in  an  office  of  such 
high  importance  as  that  of  healing,  requiring  so^  much 
thought  and  power  of  judgment?  How  dared  it  imi- 
tate, without  hesitation,  all  those  indirect  and  revolution- 

*  Page  70  of  the  Organon. 


120  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

ary  processes  inaugurated  in  diseases  by  that  vital  force, 
and  copy  them  as  if  they  were  the  non  plus  ultra,  the 
best  that  reason  could  devise?  Did  not  God  grant  us 
his  noblest  gift,  reflecting  reason  and  unfettered  power 
of  deliberation,  in  order  that  we  might,  for  the  benefit 
of  mankind,  surpass  immeasurably  the  effort  of  the  un- 
guided  vital  power  in  bringing  relief? 

"  If,  therefore,  the  ordinary  school  of  medicine,  in  its 
rash  imitation  of  crude,  unreasonable,  automatic  vital 
energy,  etc."  * 

In    fact,  the    efforts    of   nature   were    regarded    by 

Hahnemann  as  the  disease  itself. 

"  He  does  not  perceive  that  all  the  above-named  local 
symptoms,  evacuations,  and  apparent  derivative  actions 
(begun  and  supported  by  the  unthinking,  unguided  vital 
force  in  conquering  the  original  chronic  disease)  are  in 
fact  the  disease  itself, 

"  Since  the  crude  efforts  of  nature  for  attaining  relief 
in  acute,  and  more  particularly  in  chronic  diseases,  are 
extremely  imperfect  and  in  themselves  a  disease,    .     .     . 

and  still  less  was  that  vital  force 

given  to  us  that  its  imperfect  and  morbid  efforts  (to 
rescue  itself  from  disease)  might  be  imitated. 

"What  man  of  sense  would  undertake  to  imitate 
nature  in  her  endeavors  of  coming  to  the  rescue  ?  Those 
efforts  are,  in  fact,  the  disease  itself;  and  the  morbidly 
affected  vital  force  is  the  producer  of  disease  becoming 
manifest.  Necessarily,  therefore,  every  artificial  imita- 
tion as  well  as  the  suppression  of  these  natural  efforts 
must  either  increase  the  evil,  or  render  it  dangerous  by 
suppression ;  the  allopathist  does  both,  and  then  extols 
this  practice  as  healing  art,  as  '  rational '  healing  art ! 

"  He  is  in  the  wrong.  That  noble  innate  power, 
destined  to  govern  life  in  the  most  perfect  manner  during 
health,  equally  present  in  all  parts  of  the  organism,  in 
the  sensitive  as  well  as  in  the  irritable  fibre;  that  untir- 

*  Page  28  of  the  Organon. 


LOCAL  REMEDIES  DENOUNCED.  121 

ing  mainspring  of  all  normal,  natural,  bodily  functions, 
was  never  created  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  itself  in 
diseases,  nor  to  exercise  a  healing  art  worthy  of  imita- 
tion." * 

Thus  it  *rill  be  seen  that  the  most  valuable  aid  to  the 
physician,  the  forces  of  nature,  the  so-called  "Vis  medi- 
catrix  naturae,"  is  entirely  ignored  by  Hahnemann  and 
his  followers ;  and  all  recoveries  under  their  treatment 
are  ascribed  to  their  diluted  therapeutics. 

Hahnemann  also  denounced  the  use  of  local  remedies, 
claiming  that  all  local  diseases  are  only  symptoms,  or 
indications  of  disease  of  the  general  system,  and  that  the 
proper  way  to  remedy  them  was  by  the  internal  admin- 
istration of  the  properly  selected  homoeopathic  medicine; 
and  further,  that  all  local  applications  were  not  only  of 
no  advantage,  but  positively  hurtful. 

"When  an  old-school  physician,  acting  under  the 
impression  that  he  is  curing  the  whole  disease,  destroys 
the  local  symptom  by  external  remedies,  nature  will 
offset  it  by  awakening  and  extending  the  inner  disease, 
and  all  the  dormant  symptoms  which  had  previously 
co-existed  with  the  local  affection. 

"  Many  kinds  of  external  treatment  are  in  vogue  for 
the  removal  of  local  symptoms  from  the  surface  of  the 
body,  without  curing  the  inner  miasmatic  disease.  It 
is  customary,  for  instance,  to  remove  the  itch  from  the 
skin  by  all  kinds  of  ointments;  to  destroy  chancres 
externally  by  cauterization ;  and  locally  to  exterminate 
sycotic  excrescences  by  excision,  ligature,  or  the  actual 
cautery.  This  method  of  external  treatment,  hitherto 
so  common,  is  pernicious  in  its  results."  f 

"By  placing  into  one  class  all   protracted   diseases 

*  Pages  33  and  34  of  the  Organon.    f  Page  154  of  the  Organon. 


122  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

arising  from  unwholesome  habits  of  living,  together 
with  countless  drug  diseases  (see  §  74)  produced 
by  the  persistent  and  debilitating  treatment  often 
employed  by  old-school  physicians  in  trifling  disorders, 
we  shall  then  find  that  all  other  chronic  diseases,  with- 
out exception,  are  derived  from  the  development  of 
three  chronic  miasms,  internal  syphilis,  internal  sycosis, 
but  chiefly  and  in  far  greater  proportion,  internal  psora. 
Each  of  these  must  have  pervaded  the  entire  organism, 
and  penetrated  all  its  parts  before  the  primary  repre- 
sentative local  symptom  peculiar  to  each  miasm  (itch 
eruption  of  psora,  chancre  and  bubo  of  syphilis,  and 
condyloid  excrescences  of  sycosis)  makes  its  appearance 
for  the  prevention  of  the  inner  disease."  * 

Of  these  three  miasms,  psora  is  regarded  as  the  most 

important,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  following : — 

"  Before  beginning  the  treatment  of  a  chronic  dis- 
ease it  is  necessary  to  inquire  most  carefully  if  the 
patient  had  been  infected  by  venereal  disease,  or  by 
sycotic  gonorrhoea.  In  either  case  the  treatment  should 
be  directed  against  the  affection  whose  symptoms  are 
alone  found  to  be  present ;  although  it  is  rare  in  modern 
times  to  meet  with  uncomplicated  cases  of  these  affec- 
tions. If  such  an  infection  is  acknowledged  by  the 
patient,  it  should  also  be  taken  into  consideration  when 
psora  is  the  principal  object  of  treatment,  because  the 
latter  will  have  been  complicated  with  the  former,  a 
condition  always  indicated  when  the  symptoms  of  psora 
are  mingled  with  others.  When  a  physician  is  called 
to  treat  what  he  supposes  to  be  an  inveterate  case  of 
syphilis,  he  will  usually  find  that  it  is  principally 
complicated  with  psora7  because  the  inner  itch  miasm, 
or  psora,  is  by  far  the  most  frequent  and  fundamental 
cause  of  chronw  diseases,  and  is  frequently  complicated 
either  with  syphilis  or  with  sycosis,  if  infection  with  the 
latter  has  taken  place.     But  in  by  far  the  majority  of 

*Page  145  of  the  Organon. 


PSORA.  123 

cases  psora  is  the  sole  and  fundamental  cause  of  chronic 
diseases,  whatever  their  names  may  be,  and  these  are 
often  exaggerated  and  distorted  by  allopathic  inter- 
ference." * 

The  preceding  is  a  fair  statement  of  the  principles  of 
homoeopathy  as  announced  by  Hahnemann  in  his 
Organon,  and  which  I  propose  to  discuss  in  the  subse- 
quent chapters  of  this  essay. 

*Page  156  of  the  Organon. 


124  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Homoeopathy  Continued. 

The  forces  of  nature  in  their  manifold  manifestations 
have  engaged  the  attention  of  thinking  men  from  time 
immemorial,  and  the  subject  of  life,  vital  force,  mind 
and  matter,  have  been  discussed  from  almost  every  con- 
ceivable standpoint,  and  they  still  constitute  a  fruitful 
theme  for  discussion  by  scientists  as  well  as  theolo- 
gians. 

It  is  not  my  intention  to  be  drawn  into  the  discussion 
between  the  theologian  and  scientist,  or  even  to  review 
the  subject,  only  so  far  as  may  be  necessary  in  criticising 
Hahnemann's  dynamic,  spirit-like  pathology. 

The  question  as  to  what  influence  the  so-called  vital 
force  exerts  in  life,  in  health  as  well  as  disease,  is  one 
to  which  we  cannot  attach  too  much  importance.  This 
subject  has  attracted  the  attention  of  physicians  from 
the  earliest  known  period.  I  find,  in  looking  over  the 
history  of  the  subject,  that  Hippocrates  placed  more  re- 
liance upon  the  forces  of  nature  in  the  cure  of  disease, 
than  he  did  upon  his  materia  medica.  He  claimed  that 
this  force  was  sufficient  for  all  purposes  of  the  animal 
economy,  and  also  claimed  that  it  was  immortal.  The 
Dogmatic  school  of  medicine,  which,  as  has  been  stated, 
was  formed   by  his  immediate  followers,  continued  to 


THE   VITAL   FORCE   IN   DISEASE.  125 

propagate  his  theories  upon  this,  as  well  as  other 
subjects. 

Galen  recognized  the  same  force,  which  he  called  the 
animal  and  vital  spirits,  and  leaves  us  considerable 
literature  upon  the  subject. 

Stahl,  the  founder  of  the  Expectant  school  of  medi- 
cine, believed  the  "  anima,"  or  soul,  superintended  the 
formation  and  growth  of  the  body,  and  that  the  dis- 
turbance produced  by  this  force  was  the  cause  of  disease; 
so  that  it  will  be  seen  that  Hahnemann's  pathology  was 
really  an  infringement  upon  StahPs  patent. 

Both  ancient  and  modern  medical  literature  is  filled 
with  speculations  upon  this  subject ;  and  we  have  Vital- 
ists,  Solidists  and  Hu moralists  in  pathology ;  but  the 
evident  tendency  of  the  modern  scientist  is  toward 
materialism. 

The  scientist  of  the  present  day  believes  in  the  unity 
of  force,  i.  e.,  that  there  is  but  one  force  in  nature,  and 
that  this  force  emanates  from  matter,  and  doe^  not,  and 
could  not  exist,  without  it;  and  further,  that  it  is  as  per- 
sistent and  as  indestructible  as  matter  itself,  and  that  its 
different  manifestations,  as  light,  heat,  electricity,  etc., 
are  interconvertible  terms  and  mean  one  and  the  same 
thing  under  different  circumstances. 

The  modern  doctrine  of  the  correlation,  conservation 
and  unity  of  force  is  very  generally  accepted  as  true;  and  if 
the  line  of  investigation  begun  by  Lockyer  is  continued 
as  ably  as  he  has  begun   it,  the  time  may  not  be  far 


126  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

distant  when  the  unity  of  matter  will  also  be  estab- 
lished. 

If,  then,  we  accept  the  doctrine  of  unity  of  force,  the 
question  as  to  the  vital  force  is  easily  answered.  It  is 
simply  a  manifestation  of  this  universal  force  which 
pervades  all  Nature,  as  modified  by  the  action  and 
reaction  upon  itself  of  the  highly  organized  matter 
composing  our  bodies. 

Let  us  begin  low  down  in  the  scale  of  life  and  see 
how  this  arrangement  will  work  ;  take,  for  example,  the 
ameboid  bodies,  that  consist  of  a  single  microscopic  cell. 
As  viewed  under  the  microscope  these  bodies  are  among 
the  most  simple  in  structure  of  all  the  living  organisms, 
yet  they  are  endowed  with  sensation  and  motion,  which 
seems  to  be  the  sum  of  their  vitality.  They  are  seen  to 
move,  to  avoid  apparent  danger,  to  pursue  and  seize  their 
food ;  having  no  mouths  they  envelop  it  with  their 
entire  bodies,  and  absorb  it  in  this  way.  They  also 
make  an  opening  in  the  cell  wall,  which  serves  as  an 
anus,  by  which  the  discharge  of  effete  matter  is  effected  ; 
and  they  propagate  their  species  by  fission,  i.  e.,  by 
breaking  into  pieces,  each  one  of  which  develops  into  a 
perfect  organism  like  unto  the  parent  cell. 

Here,  then,  we  have  all  the  phenomena  of  organic  life 
performed  by  a  single  cell.  As  we  ascend  the  scale,  we 
find  life  becoming  more  complicated,  and  organized  beings 
are  formed  by  an  aggregation  of  cell  elements,  and  a 
single  cell  no  longer  performs  all  the  necessary  functions 


DYNAMIC  PATHOLOGY   REFUTED.  127 

of  life ;  but  certain  cells  are  set  apart  for  the  perform- 
ance of  particular  functions,  and  thus  the  different  organs 
and  tissues  of  the  body  are  formed.  This  process  has 
been  going  on  through  the  countless  ages  that  have  rolled 
by,  until  we  have,  as  a  result  of  this  evolution,  man  in 
his  present  state ;  his  body  composed  of  countless  mil- 
lions of  cells,  and  his  vital  force  consists  of  the  sum  of 
the  vital  forces  of  these  innumerable  cell  elements. 

The  amount  of  electric  force  will  depend  upon  the 
number  of  cells  in  a  battery;  so  will  the  amount  of  heat 
and  light  depend  upon  the  amount  of  combustible 
material  consumed  in  a  furnace.  If  the  cells  in  a  bat- 
tery are  corroded  and  filthy  and  the  acid  needs  replenish- 
ing, the  quality  and  quantity  of  the  electricity  will  be 
diminished. 

So  it  is  with  our  bodies.  If  our  organs  are  not  in 
good  working  order,  and  our  circulating  fluids  are  de- 
praved, our  vital  force  will  be  lowered,  but  will  not  be, 
and  cannot  be  diseased.  Hahnemann  and  his  followers 
to  the  contrary,  notwithstanding. 

It  is  impossible  for  me  to  have  any  clear  conception 
of  a  diseased  condition  of  the  vital  force.  It  is  not 
subject  to  investigation  by  the  scalpel  or  microscope,  or 
any  of  the  ordinary  means  by  which  we  investigate  dis- 
eased structure. 

We  are  able  to  observe  diseased  processes  in  organized 
matter,  both  before  and  after  death,  but  nothing  of  the 
kind  can  be  applied  to  vital  force.     It  is  modified  solely 


128  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

by  the  organs  and  tissues  of  the  body,  and  its  manifes- 
tations will  vary  in  accordance  with  their  condition. 
Hence,  the  natural  and  logical  conclusion  is,  that 
Hahnemann's  spirit-like,  dynamic,  vital  force  pathol- 
ogy has  no  existence,  only  in  the  minds  of  dreaming 
theorists. 

But  Hahnemann  claims,  as  shown  by  previous  quota- 
tions from  the  Organon,  that  causes  of  disease  are  also 
immaterial  and  dynamic,  and  he  criticises  severely  the 
Allopathic  school  of  physicians  for  searching  for  their 
causes. 

Viewed  in  the  light  of  recent  science,  I  should  have 
thought  it  unnecessary  to  controvert  Hahnemann's  views, 
either  in  the  pathology  or  the  semiology  of  disease,  be- 
lieving, of  course,  that  those  absurd  opinions  had  been 
abandoned  by  his  more  intelligent  followers  of  to-day; 
but  such  is  not  the  fact.  They  still  permeate  their 
literature  and  are  taught  by  their  authors. 

In  the  April  number  of  the  Medical  Counselor  (a 
Homoeopathic  Journal  published  in  Chicago,  Illinois), 
will  be  found  several  questions  addressed  to  the  profes- 
sion by  the  Bureau  of  Obstetrics  of  the  Homoeopathic 
State  Medical  Society  of  New  Jersey,  in  regard  to  the 
pathology  and  treatment  of  after-pains.  These  ques- 
tions are  answered  by  a  prominent  homoeopathic  prac- 
titioner and  author,  who  takes  the  ground  that  these 
after-pains  are  caused  by  an  "abnormal  condition  of 
the  vital  force,"  and  that  the  reason  they  are  not  present 


NATURE   OF   MIASM.  129 

in  primiparae  and  present  in  multipara,  is  because  of 
the  same  abnormal  condition  of  the  same  force. 

Many  examples  could  be  cited  to  prove  that  our 
brethren  of  the  homoeopathic  school  are  still  hugging 
the  delusion  that  disease  consists  of  a  "  disordered  con- 
dition of  the  spirit-like  dynamic  vital  force,  etc." 

Hahnemann  was  persistent  in  advocating  the  dynamic 
theory  as  applied  to  acute  diseases,  but  shows  his  incon- 
sistency, or  seems  to  have  forgotten  himself,  in  forming 
his  theory  for  chronic  diseases,  which  he  bases  upon  three 
chronic  miasms ;  which  latter  word  Webster  defines  as 
"  Infection  floating  in  the  air ;  the  effluvia,  or  fine 
particles  of  any  putrefying  bodies  rising  and  floating  in 
the  atmosphere  and  considered  to  be  noxious  to  health ; 
deadly  exhalation." 

A   miasm  is  certainly  a  material  substance,  and  is 

utterly  inconsistent  with  his  dynamic  theory. 

"  True,  natural  chronic  diseases  are  those  which  owe 
their  origin  to  a  chronic  miasm  ;  they  constantly  extend, 
and,  notwithstanding  the  most  carefully  regulated  men- 
tal and  bodily  habits,  they  will  never  cease  to  torment 
their  victim  with  constantly  renewed  suffering  to  the 
end  of  his  life,  if  left  to  themselves  without  the  aid  of 
specific  remedies  for  their  relief.  These  are  the  most 
numerous,  and  the  source  of  great  suffering  to  the  human 
race ;  the  most  robust  constitution,  the  best  of  habits, 
and  the  greatest  energy  of  unaided  vital  force  are  unable 
to  resist  them." "  Hitherto,  only  syph- 
ilis was  known  to  some  extent  as  one  of  these  chronic 
miasmatic  diseases,  which,  if  left  uncured  will  become 
extinct  only  with  life  itself.     Sycosis  (cauliflower  excres- 


130  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

cences)  if  left  to  itself  uncured,  is  likewise  inextinguish- 
able by  the  vital  force." 

"  But  psora,  as  a  chronic  miasm,  is  of  incompar- 
ably greater  significance  than  either  of  the  above- 
named  chronic  miasms.  While  venereal  chancre  and 
the  cauliflower  excrescences  mark  the  internal,  specific 
nature  of  the  two  former  diseases,  psora,  after  complete 
infection  of  the  entire  organism,  indicates  its  origin  from 
an  internal  and  monstrous  chronic  miasm,  by  a  peculiar 
cutaneous  eruption,  sometimes  consisting  merely  in  a  few 
pimples  combined  with  intolerable  tickling,  voluptu- 
ous itching,  and  specific  odor.  Psora  is  the  only  real, 
fundamental  cause  and  source  of  all  the  other  countless 
forms  of  disease,  [70]  figuring  as  peculiar  and  definite 
diseases  in  books  on  pathology,  under  the  names  of  ner- 
vous debility,  hysteria,  hypochondriasis,  mania,  melan- 
choly, idiocy,  madness,  epilepsy  and  convulsions  of  all 
kinds,  softening  of  the  bones  (rachitis),  scoliosis  and 
kyphosis,  caries  of  the  bones,  cancer,  varices,  pseudo- 
plasms,  gout,  hemorrhoids,  icterus  and  cyanosis,  dropsy, 
amenorrhea,  haemorrhages  from  the  stomach,  nose,  lungs, 
bladder,  or  uterus;  asthma  and  suppuration  of  the  lungs; 
impotence  and  sterility ;  sick  headache  (hemicrania) ; 
deafness;  cataract  and  glaucoma;  renal  calculus ;  para- 
lysis ;  deficiency  of  the  special  senses,  and  pains  of  every 
variety/'  * 

Hahnemann  thus  classified  scabies,  or  common  itch,  as 
a  constitutional,  psoric  disease,  and  prescribed  constitu- 
tional treatment  only,  for  its  relief;  claiming  that  it 
could  thereby  be  cured  in  ten  or  twelve  weeks,  f 

It  is  almost  universally  conceded  by  rational  physi- 
cians at  this  time,  that  the  causes  of  all  the  infectious  and 
contagious  diseases  are  material  substances  which  are 
absorbed  into  the  system,  and  after  a  greater  or  lesser 

*Page  109  of  the  Organon.  fSee  page  116  of  this  work. 


SECTARIAN  NOMENCLATURE.  131 

period  of  incubation,  each,  according  to  its  kind,  excites 
its  peculiar  morbid  process.  One  disease  germ  produc- 
ing typhoid  fever;  another,  typhus  fever;  another,  scar- 
let fever;  while  smallpox,  measles,  diphtheria,  relapsing 
fever,  malarious  fevers,  the  plague,  yellow  fever,  cholera, 
erysipelas,  puerperal  fever,  and  so  on,  through  the  entire 
list  of  acute  infectious  diseases,  each  one  being  caused  by 
its  own  specific  germ,  which  produces  that  particular 
disease  and  no  other. 

Again,  who  will  deny  that  the  chronic  infectious 
diseases,  such  as  syphilis,  and  hydrophobia,  are  caused 
by  the  absorption  of  noxious  material  into  the  system  ? 
The  poison  from  venomous  serpents,  or  the  sting  of  poi- 
sonous insects,  is  a  material  thing,  which  goes  directly 
into  the  circulation.  What  stronger  testimony  could  be 
required  in  controverting  the  dynamic  theory  of  the 
causes  of  diseases. 

But  again,  we  have  numerous  diseases  which  are 
caused  by  the  retention  in  the  system  of  septic  mate- 
rial which  the  emunctories  fail  to  eliminate,  and  the  pa- 
tient is  poisoned  by  a  retention  of  his  own  secretions  and 
excretions,  or  the  debris  of  broken  down  tissue.  In  this 
class  may  be  placed  such  diseases  as  rheumatism,  gout, 
jaundice,  uraemia,  etc.,  etc. 

Prior  to  the  time  of  Halmemann  the  terms  allopath, 
homoeopath  and  antipath  were  not  in  common  use 
among  physicians.  These  terms  were  used  by  Hahne- 
mann to  designate  the  three  principal  methods  of  heal- 


132  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

iDg.  The  term  allopathic  was  applied  by  him  to  the 
prevailing  school  of  physicians,  and  according  to  his 
definition  meant  the  substitution  of  a  drug-disease  dis- 
similar in  nature  to  the  affection  to  be  treated.  THomoeo- 
pathic  was  used  by  him  to  designate  his  therapeutic  law 
of  similars,  or  the  substitution  of  a  drug-disease  similar 
in  symptoms  to  the  disease  to  be  prescribed  for.  [Anti- 
pathic was  used  to  express  the  palliative  method  or 
opposing  contraries  by  contraries,  a  method  used  princi- 
pally against  prominent  symptoms — a  treatment  that 
was  considered  the  most  pernicious  of  all  by  Hahne- 
mann, and  is  still  believed  so  by  his  followers — the  pure 
homceopathists ;  so  much  so  that  they  will  not  pre- 
scribe anodynes  to  relieve  violent  pain.  It  is  strong 
proof  of  Hahnemann's  celebrity,  that  he  has  succeeded 
in  fastening  these  names  upon  the  schools,  and  physi- 
cians are  now  known  throughout  the  civilized  world  by 
the  names  of  allopaths  and  homoeopaths. 

The  law  of  similars  is  the  chief  corner-stone  of 
homoeopathy,  and  will  be  the  last  of  all  their  principles 
that  will  be  abandoned ;  yet  its  fate  is  certainly  sealed, 
and  in  a  few  short  years  it  will  be  numbered  with  the 
delusions  of  the  past.  It  is  not  claimed  by  the  advo- 
cates of  this  law  that  medicines  have  the  power  of 
exciting  diseases  or  diseased  conditions  similar  to  the 
ones  for  which  they  are  prescribed,  but  simply  symp- 
toms or  disordered  sensorial  conditions  similar  to  those 
present  in  the  case  to  be  treated. 


SYMPTOMATOLOGY.  1 33 

It  is  of  no  consequence  what  pathological  condition 

is   present;    whether   it   is   an    ordinary  inflammation, 

congestion,  ulceration,  degeneration,  tubercle  or  cancer, 

the  only  thing  to  be  considered  in  selecting  the  remedy 

under  this  law  is  the  totality  of  symptoms,  as  may  be 

seen  from  the  following  : — 

"  1st.  All  that  a  physician  may  regard  as  curable 
in  diseases  consists  entirely  in  the  complaints  of  the 
patient,  and  the  morbid  changes  of  his  health  percep- 
tible to  the  senses ;  that  is  to  say,  it  consists  entirely  in 
the  totality  of  symptoms  through  which  the  disease 
expresses  its  demand  for  the  appropriate  remedy  ;  while, 
on  the  other  hand,  every  fictitious  or  obscure  internal 
cause  and  condition,  or  imaginary,  material,  morbific 
matter  are  not  objects  of  treatment. 

"2d.  This  change  of  health  (discord  of  feeling) 
which  we  call  disease  can  only  be  changed  back 
(umstimmen)  to  the  normal  state  by  means  of  medi- 
cines, the  curative  power  of  which,  consequently,  con- 
sists in  their  ability  to  alter  the  state  of  feelings ;  i.  e.,  in 
the  production  of  peculiar  morbid  symptoms,  recog- 
nized most  distinctly  and  purely  by  testing  these  medi- 
cines upon  the  bodies  of  healthy  persons. 

"  3d.  According  to  experience,  natural  disease  cannot 
be  cured  by  medicines  producing  by  themselves,  in 
healthy  persons,  a  morbid  condition  dissimilar  to  and 
different  from  that  of  the  disease  to  be  cured.  It  is, 
therefore,  incurable  by  allopathic  treatment,  and  even 
nature  herself  never  cures  natural  disease  by  super- 
adding another  disease  dissimilar  to,  though  of  much 
greater  intensity  than  the  first. 

"4th.  Experience  also  teaches  that  only  transient 
relief  is  procured  by  medicines  inclined  to  generate  in  a 
healthy  person  an  artificial  symptom  which  is  the  exact 
opposite  of  certain  symptoms  peculiar  to  the  natural 
disease  to  be  cured.     And  we  also  learn  that  such  medi- 


134  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

cines  can  never  cure  an  inveterate  disease  without 
always  creating  a  subsequent  aggravation  of  the  same. 
On  this  account  this  antipathic,  palliative  process  is 
entirely  inappropriate  in  its  application  to  chronic  and 
serious  diseases. 

"  5th.  The  only  really  salutary  treatment  is  that  of 
the  homoeopathic  method,  according  to  which  the  totality 
of  symptoms  of  a  natural  disease  is  combated  by  a 
medicine  in  commensurate  dose,  capable  of  creating  in 
the  healthy  body  symptoms  most  similar  to  those  of  the 
natural  disease.  And  as  diseases  are  only  dynamic 
disturbances  of  the  vital  force,  they  are  overcome  with- 
out additional  suffering,  and  having  been  perfectly  and 
permanently  extinguished,  they  must  cease  to  exist/'  * 

"All  of  these  observable  signs  together  represent  the 
disease  in  its  full  extent;  that  is,  they  constitute  together 
the  true  and  only  conceivable  form  of  the  disease.[2] 

"Hence  the  totality  of  these  symptoms,  this  out- 
wardly reflected  image  of  the  inner  nature  of  the  disease, 
i.  e.,  of  the  suffering  vital  force,  must  be  the  chief  or  only 
means  of  the  disease  to  make  known  the  remedy  neces- 
sary for  its  cure,  the  only  means  determining  the  selec- 
tion of  the  appropriate  remedial  agent.  In  short,  the 
totality  of  the  symptoms  must  be  regarded  by  the  physi- 
cian as  the  principal  and  only  condition  to  be  recognized 
and  removed  by  his  art  in  each  case  of  disease,  that  it 
may  be  cured  and  converted  into  health."  f 

"  It  is  then  unquestionably  true  that,  besides  the 
totality  of  symptoms,  it  is  impossible  to  discover  any 
other  manifestation  by  which  diseases  could  express  their 
need  of  relief.  Hence  it  undeniably  follows  that  the 
totality  of  symptoms  observed  in  each  individual  case  of 
disease  can  be  the  only  indication  to  guide  us  in  the  se- 
lection of  a  remedy."  % 

u  §  22.  Hence  there  is  no  discoverable  part  that  can 

be  removed  from  a  disease  for  the  purpose  of  restoring 

health,  except  the  totality  of  its  signs  and  symptoms."  § 

*  Page  103  of  the  Organon.  f  Pages  66  and  67  of  the  Organon. 
%  Page  70  of  the  Organon.  \  Page  72  of  the  Organon. 


UNSCIENTIFIC   THEORY.  135 

MSo  it  appears  from  the  preceding  quotations,  that  dis- 
ease, as  considered  by  the  practicing  homoeopathic  physi- 
cians, consists  of  a  "  totality  of  symptoms."  ~J  And  under 
the  law  of  "  similia  similibus  curantur,"  real  pathologi- 
cal conditions  are  ignored,  and  many  practitioners  in  that 
school  have  confined  their  studies  to  a  manual  of  symp- 
tomatology and  a  repertory.  It  is  due  our  homoeopathic 
brethren,  however,  to  say  that  many  of  the  members  of 
that  school  are  well  versed  in  the  necessary  elementary 
branches  of  medicine,  and  possess  a  high  degree  of  cul- 
ture in  other  respects. 

As  unscientific  and  irrational  as  the  selection  and 
administration  of  remedies  under  this  law  appears  to 
be,  the  reasoning  is  good,  compared  with  the  insane 
idea  which  Hahnemann  entertained  in  regard  to  the 
result. 

It  has  been  accepted  as  a  demonstrated  fact  in  all  ages, 
by  philosophers,  that  when  a  cause  is  removed  the  effect 
will  cease  :yaut  Hahnemann  claims  that  the  converse  of 
this  proposition  is  equally  true,  and  that  when  the  symp- 
toms of  a  diseased  process  are  canceled  by  the  operation 
of  a  homoeopathic  remedy,  the  cause  will  immedi- 
ately cease  to  act.  J 

"  Diseases  are  produced  only  by  the  morbidly  dis- 
turbed vital  force. 

It  follows  that  after  the  cure  of  such  manifestations  of 
disease,  and  of  all  discoverable  aberrations  from  healthy 
vital  functions,  their  disappearance  must  necessarily 
and   with   equal   certainty    be   presumed   to   result   in 


136  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

and  to  determine  the  restoration  of  the  integrity  of 
vital  force,  and  the  return  of  health  to  the  entire 
organism."  * 

"  In  effecting  a  cure,  the  inner  change  of  vital 
force,  forming  the  basis  of  disease,  that  is,  the  totality 
of  disease,  is  always  canceled  by  removing  the  entire 
complex  of  perceptible  signs  and  disturbances  of  the 
disease.  Hence  it  follows  that  the  physician  has  only 
to  remove  the  entire  complex  of  symptoms  in  order  to 
cancel  and  obliterate  simultaneously  the  internal  change ; 
that  is,  the  morbidly  altered  vital  force,  the  totality  of 
the  disease,  in  fact,  the  disease  itself"  f 

These  quotations  give  a  fair  example  of  the  reasoning 
of  Hahnemann.  Such  inconsistencies  abound  in  his 
writings  everywhere,  yet  he  has  numerous,  respectable 
and  intelligent  disciples,  and  they  have  numerous 
patrons  who  possess  good  business  qualifications  in  the 
ordinary  vocations  of  life,  however  unwise  they  may  be 
in  selecting  a  physician.  Let  us  hope,  for  the  credit  of 
their  intelligence,  that  they  have  adopted  the  system 
without  proper  investigation. 

tjjlahneniann  claims  that  this  law  of  similars  is  a 
Divine  revelation  to  him,  an  inestimable  boon  of  God 
to  man,  and  that  the  medical  world  had  been  groping 
in  darkness  until  his  coming;!  and  he  points  out  sev- 
eral examples  where  some  of  his  illustrious  predeces- 
sors had  almost  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  great  truth, 
but  the  privilege  of  bringing  it  forth  in  the  full  light 
of  day  was  reserved  for  him. 

The  modus  operandi  by  which  cures  are  effected  under 
*  Page  68  of  the  Organon.  f  Page  70  of  the  Organon. 


OPERATION   OF   THE   LAW   OF   SIMILARS.         137 

this  law  is  explained  by  Hahnemann  himself  in  the 

following  words  : — 

"  We  have  seen  that  every  disease  (not  subject  to 
surgery  alone)  is  based  upon  some  particular  morbid 
derangement  in  the  feelings  and  functions  of  the  vital 
force  ;  and  thus,  in  the  process  of  a  homoeopathic  cure,  by 
administering  a  medicinal  potency  chosen  exactly  in 
accordance  with  the  similitude  of  symptoms,  a  somewhat 
stronger,  similar,  aHijicial  morbid  affection  is  implanted 
upon  the  vital  power  deranged  by  a  natural  disease ;  this 
artificial  affection  is  substituted,  as  it  were,  for  the  weaker 
similar  natural  disease  (morbid  excitation),  against  which 
the  instinctive  vital  force,  now  only  excited  to  stronger 
effort  by  the  drug  affection,  needs  only  to  direct  its  in- 
creased energy ;  but  owing  to  its  brief  duration  [13]  it 
will  soon  be  overcome  by  the  vital  force,  which,  liberated 
first  from  the  natural  disease,  and  finally  from  the  sub- 
stUuted  artificial  (drug-)  affection,  now  again  finds  iteelf 
enabled  to  continue  the  life  of  the  organism  in  healths  * 

This  explanation  is  about  on  a  par  with  that  of  the 
schoolboy  who  said  that  "  although  he  could  not  whip 
Billy  Patterson  himself,  he  was  able  to  whip  the  boy 
who  could." 

It  is  claimed  in  this  paragraph  that  a  medicinal 
potency  (which  means  any  potency  between  the  mother 
tincture  and  the  thirtieth,  or  the  decillionth  of  a  drop) 
chosen  in  exact  accordance  with  a  similitude  of  symp- 
toms has  the  power  of  exciting  a  stronger  affection  than 
the  natural  disease  for  which  it  is  prescribed,  and  al- 
though the  vital  force  is  unable  to  cope  with  this  natural 
affection  it  is  entirely  competent  to  remove  the  stronger 
drug-disease  excited  by  its  action. 

*  Pages  74  and  75  of  the  Organon. 


138  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

This  is  a  fair  example  of  Hahnemann's  logic,  and  it 
is  certainly  sufficiently  attenuated  to  suit  the  most  fas- 
tidious high  dilutionist. 

What  can  be  said  in  reply  to  such  reasoning  as  I  have 
just  cited ;  or  what  can  be  done  in  the  way  of  criticism  or 
controversion  of  the  doctrines  of  a  school  which  places 
its  pathology  upon  such  a  trauscendental  plane,  which 
makes  the  causes  of  disease  immaterial  and  dynamic, 
disease  itself  a  nonentity,  and  bases  its  therapeutical 
procedures  upon  a  law  supported  by  such  absurd  reasons 
as-  those  referred  to. 

The  law  of  similars  will  be  further  discussed  in  con- 
nection with  another  branch  of  the  subject. 


PHARMACODYNAMICS.  1 39 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Discussion  of  Homoeopathy  Continued. 

PROVINGS. 

The  physiological  action  of  medicines  is  a  subject 
which  has  engaged  the  attention  of  physicians  from  the 
infancy  of  the  science,  and  is  one  of  great  importance. 
The  result  of  experiment  in  that  direction  from  time  to 
time  has  greatly  enriched  our  knowledge  of  the  materia 
medica,  and  formed  the  basis  for  many  valuable  thera- 
peutical applications ;  and  due  credit  must  be  awarded 
to  our  brethren  of  the  homoeopathic  school  for  their 
contributions  to  this  branch  of  medical  science ;  not, 
however,  without  criticism  upon  their  method. 

Numerous  difficulties  surround  the  experimenter  in 
this  business,  and  obstacles  present  themselves  at  every 
step,  when  man  is  used  as  a  pharmacometer.  It  is 
almost  impossible  to  find  a  human  being  who  is 
entirely  free  from  disease  or  morbid  sensations  of  some 
kind.  Galen  was  convinced  of  this  fact  as  long  ago  as 
the  second  century,  a.d.,  and  mentions  the  fact  several 
times  in  his  writings.  Other  observers  have  reached 
the  same  conclusion.  It  is  also  impossible,  in  the 
human  subject,  to  eliminate  mental  influences.  The 
celebrated  John  Hunter  once  remarked  that  by  directing 
his  attention  strongly  to  only  one  part  of  his  body  for  a 


140  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

few  minutes  he  always  felt  a  morbid  sensation  in  that 
part ;  and  Dr.  Carpenter  refers  to  this  matter  in  a  paper 
upon  the  subject  of  "  Spiritualism  and  Mesmerism,"  in 
which  he  discusses  this  subject  in  a  masterly  manner, 
under  the  head  of  the  "  Predominant  Idea."  This 
article  was  recently  republished  in  this  country,  in  the 
Popular  Science  Monthly,  and  is  well  worthy  of  careful 
perusal.  The  difficulty  of  finding  perfectly  healthy 
individuals,  the  impossibility  of  eliminating  mental  and 
other  influences,  and  the  absurd  degree  to  which  the 
homoeopaths  have  continued  to  record  the  symptoms, 
detracts  greatly  from  the  value  of  their  provings.  The 
most  valuable  additions  made  to  our  knowledge  of  the 
physiological  action  of  medicines  are  those  determined 
from  experiments  made  upon  the  lower  animals.  The 
number  of  pathogenetic  symptoms  ascribed  to  some 
remedies  is  perfectly  astounding ;  thus,  nux  vomica  has 
one  thousand  two  hundred  and  nine  ;  carbonate  of  lime 
one  thousand  and  ninety  ;  succus  sepia  one  thousand  two 
hundred  and  forty-two ;  and  so  on,  for  quantity. 

Suppose  the  one  thousand  and  four  hundred  medici- 
nal substances  enumerated  in  the  materia  medica  of  the 
celebrated  Arabian  author,  Eben  Baithar,  are  all  to  be 
tested,  and  they  average  one  thousand  symptoms  for  each 
one,  making  a  grand  total  of  one  million  four  hundred 
thousand  to  be  remembered.  This  would  certainly  be 
appalling  to  the  modern  medical  student,  and  the  stoutest 
heart  would  faint  before  this  ponderous  array  ;    yet  the 


PROVINGS  OF  CALCAREA.  141 

magnitude  of  the  task  should  never  deter  scientific  men 
in  search  of  truth. 

Beneath  this  immense  amount  of  rubbish  a  few  grains 
of  truth  lie  buried  ;  but  the  task  of  searching  for  it  is 
indeed  herculean ;  countless  pathogenetic  symptoms 
being  ascribed  to  substances  known  to  be  insoluble  and 
inert,  such  as  the  unoxidized  metals,  etc. 

Hahnemann  claims,  however,  that  by  dilutions  and 
triturations  these  substances  become  sufficiently  attenu- 
ated to  acquire  a  dynamic  force,  and  thus  the  sextillionth 
part  of  a  grain  of  carbonate  of  lime,  which  is  prepared 
from  oyster  shells,  but  also  abounds  in  the  ordinary 
surface  water  of  the  country,  which  we  use  daily  for 
drinking  purposes,  will  produce  over  one  thousand  exci- 
tations of  our  sensorial  condition.  The  ordinary  lime- 
stone water,  in  portions  of  the  States  of  Indiana  and 
Kentucky,  contains,  in  some  localities,  as  much  as  two 
hundred  grains  of  lime  to  the  gallon.  A  person 
drinking  an  ordinary  gobletful  of  it  would  take  into 
his  system  about  ten  or  twelve  grains. 

I  will  enumerate  a  few  of  these  symptoms,  taken  from 

his  work  on  materia  medica: — 

"  In  the  evening  (13  days  after  taking),  on  going  out, 
unsteady  gait." 

"  Dizziness  on  walking  out  (at  the  end  of  26  days)." 

"  Sudden  deafness  immediately  after  dinner  ;  itching 
on  the  border  of  the  eyelids  (5  days  after  taking)." 

"  Itching  at  the  anterior  part  of  the  glans  penis  after 
urination  (after  28  days)." 


142  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

"  Ardent  venereal  desire,  especially  during  a  walk 
before  dinner  (after  17  days)." 

"  Great  heat  at  the  extremity  of  the  big  toe  (after  21 
days)." 

"  Discharge  of  blood  between  the  menses,  nine  days 
before  the  period,  for  two  days." 

"  Hemorrhage  from  the  uterus  of  an  old  woman,  who 
had  ceased  menstruating  for  many  years,  in  the  last 
quarter  of  the  moon." 

"  Falls  asleep  frequently,  late  in  the  evening." 

"  Giddiness  from  scratching  behind  the  ear." 

i(  The  hair  of  the  head  comes  out,  especially  in 
lying-in  women." 

"  Stitches  in  the  ear  and  temple,  going  off  during  rest 
and  wThen  the  eyes  are  closed." 

"Alternate  buzzing,  as  of  mosquitoes  or  cracking  or 
breaking  of  dry  straw,  in  left  ear." 

"  Cracking  in  ear  when  chewing." 

"  Soreness  of  right  nostril." 

"  Painful  pimple  in  right  nostril." 

"  Smell  before  the  nose,  as  of  rotten  eggs,  gunpowder 


or  manure." 


"  Stoppage  of  the  nose  by  yellow,  fetid  pus." 

These  quotations  are  made  at  random  from  the  pro- 
vings  of  carbonate  of  lime,  and  they  are  made,  not  for 
the  purpose  of  ridicule,  but  in  all  seriousness ;  they 
are  fair  samples  of  homoeopathic  provings.  These 
symptoms  are  claimed  to  have  been  produced  by  an 
infinitesimal  quantity  of  this  substance,  many  million 


INCONSISTENCIES.  143 

times  less  than  is  taken  into  the  system  with  each  goblet 
of  our  ordinary  drinking  water. 

In  looking  over  the  homoeopathic  literature  of  the  day 
we  find  huge,  ponderous  volumes  filled  with  this  sort  of 
stuff.  Allen's  "  Encyclopedia  of  Pure  Materia  Medica" 
consists  of  ten  volumes,  averaging  nearly  seven  hundred 
pages  each.  If  the  nonsensical  trash  was  eliminated 
one  or  two  volumes  would  contain  everything  of 
value  there  is  in  it ;  but  even  allowing  that  nine- 
tenths  of  these  provings  are  entirely  imaginary,  there  is 
still  a  considerable  quantity  of  valuable  information  to 
be  carried  to  the  credit  side  of  our  therapeutical  knowl- 
edge, if  we  had  sufficient  patience  and  perseverance  to 
seek  for  it  among  all  this  rubbish. 

I  have  already  declared  it  as  my  opinion,  that  the 
dilutions  and  triturations  of  Hahnemann  were  an  out- 
growth of  the  law  of  similars,  and  were  rendered 
necessary  from  the  simple  fact  that  medicines  could  not 
be  prescribed  in  sensible,  i.  e.,  appreciable  quantities, 
under  that  law,  on  account  of  the  aggravation  that 
necessarily  followed  from  their  administration  in  such 
quantities. 

I  am  willing,  however,  to  discuss  this  portion  of  the 
subject  from  another  standpoint,  and  concede  to  homoeo- 
pathy the  more  consistent  position  of  having  its  thera- 
peutics based  upon  its  pathology ;  and  I  will  admit  that 
Hahnemann,  after  he  had  placed  the  cause  of  disease 
upon  a  dynamic  plane,  entirely  above  things  material, 


144  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

and  also  made  disease  itself  consist  of  a  disordered  con- 
dition of  that  "  spirit-like,  dynamic,  vital  force,"  saw 
the  necessity  of  elevating  his  therapeutics  to  the  same 
dynamic  altitude. 

If  homceopathists  were  all  agreed  in  this  view  of  the 
case,  the  question  could  soon  be  disposed  of,  because 
when  they  conceded  that  their  medicines  have  a  dynamic 
power  only,  it  would  settle  the  whole  question  to  de- 
monstrate that  they  have  no  such  power  ;  but  they  are 
not  agreed  upon  this  point,  for  many  of  them  claim  that 
their  medicines  act  "  physiologically,  chemically  and 
mechanically ;"  consequently  this  question  will  have  to 
be  discussed  from  more  than  one  standpoint. 

Hahnemann  himself  says  : — 

"  Our  vital  force,  that  spirit-like  dynamis,  cannot  be 
reached  nor  affected  except  by  a  spirit-like  {dynamic) 
process,  resulting  from  the  hurtful  influence  of  hostile 
agencies  from  the  outer  world  acting  upon  the  healthy 
organism,  and  disturbing  the  harmonious  process  of  life. 
Neither  can  the  physician  free  the  vital  force  from  any  of 
these  morbid  disturbances,  i.  e.,  disease,  except  likewise  by 
spirit-like  (dynamic,  virtual)  alterative  powers  of  the 
appropriate  remedies  acting  upon  spirit-like  vital  force. 
.  .  .  Thus,  healing  remedies  can  and-  actually  do 
restore  health  and  vital  harmony  only  by  virtue  of  their 
dynamic  action  upon  the  vital  force."  * 

This  difference  of  opinion  between  Hahnemann  and 

his    followers   will  render  it  necessary  to  discuss  the 

question   as   to   whether   these   triturated   and   diluted 

medicines   are   physical    agents   or  dynamic  forces.     I 

think  I  shall  be  able  to  show  that  they  are  neither. 

*  Page  69  of  the  Organon. 


HIGH   POTENCIES  TESTED.  145 

I  have  already  explained  the  method  of  preparing 
these  attenuations,  and  although  Hahnemann  insists 
upon  their  dynamization,  he  still  claims  their  substan- 
tive presence  in  the  highest  dilutions,  although  there  is 
but  the  decillionth  part  of  a  grain  in  the  thirtieth 
potency.  I  have  performed  some  chemical  and  micro- 
scopical experiments  in  order  to  test  the  presence  of 
these  substances  in  some  of  these  attenuations.  A  por- 
tion of  the  preparations  used  in  these  experiments  was 
carefully  prepared  by  myself,  according  to  the  instruc- 
tions given  by  the  homoeopathic  pharmacists;  others 
were  prepared  at  their  own  pharmaceutical  establish- 
ments. Without  entering  into  the  details  of  the  ex- 
periments, I  will  simply  state  the  results. 

1st.  In  the  trituration  of  insoluble  substances  no 
further  division  or  attenuation  takes  place  after  the 
fourth  or  fifth,  as  shown  by  microscopical  examination. 
Neither  do  they  become  soluble,  as  Hahnemann  claims, 
after  this  degree  of  attenuation  is  reached.  The  most 
delicate  tests  known  to  chemistry  fail  to  disclose  their 
presence  in  the  liquid ;  but  on  the  contrary,  the  micro- 
scope never  failed  to  find  the  solid  substances  in  the 
sediment. 

2d.  In  the  examination  of  the  soluble  substances, 
chemical  reagents  disclosed  their  presence  in  the  first  and 
second  dilutions,  in  a  majority  of  the  preparations  tested ; 
but  in  all  above  the  latter,  even  the  most  delicate  color- 
test  failed  to  give  any  reaction. 
10 


146  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

This  subject  is  discussed  by  a  writer  in  the  New 
England  Medical  Gazette  (a  monthly  journal  of  homoeo- 
pathy, published  in  Boston),  June  number,  in  the  year 
1878,  under  the  subject  of  "  The  Trituration  of  Silica." 
After  detailing  his  observations  and  experiments  with 
the  microscope,  his  conclusion,  in  his  own  words,  is  as 
follows : — 

" As  every  one  may  easily  see  for  himself,  by  repeating 
these  observations,  that  the  limit  of  divisibility  of  the 
metals  is  soon  reached.  As  a  rule,  it  does  not  reach  be- 
yond the  second  trituration." 

These  observations  were  made  by  C.  Wesselhceft,  m.d., 
who  translated  the  Organon  in  1878.  So  it  will  be  seen 
that  I  have  some  very  good  homoeopathic  authority  in 
confirmation  of  my  own  experiments. 

These  experiments  prove  conclusively  that  in  the 
higher  dilutions  these  medicines  cannot  be  present  in 
sufficient  quantity  to  be  of  any  force  as  physical 
agencies.  The  number  of  particles  in  any  insoluble 
substance,  no  further  division  taking  place  after  the  first 
few  triturations,  would  be  exhausted  long  before  the 
higher  potencies  were  reached.  And  if  dilutions  are 
used  after  the  third  trituration,  as  directed  for  insoluble 
substances,  they  would  contain  absolutely  nothing  but 
the  fluid,  because  of  the  failure  of  Hahnemann's  law, 
that  "  All  substances  become  soluble  after  the  third  tri- 
turation." These  experiments  also  prove  that  no  dynamic 
force  can  be  developed  by  trituration  and  dilution  of  an 


DYNAMIC  FOECE  KEFUTED.  147 

insoluble   substance;    for  Hahnemann  admits   himself 
that  dynamization  is  produced  by  division  and  dilution. 

It  is  claimed  that  in  these  triturations  the  division  of 
the  medicinal  substance  is  kept  up  in  direct  proportion 
with  its  admixture  with  sugar  of  milk;  i.e.  the  number 
of  the  particles  formed  in  the  first  trituration  is  one 
hundred  times  greater  in  the  first,  ten  thousand  times 
greater  in  the  second,  and  one  million  times  greater  in 
the  third,  and  so  on. 

These  experiments  completely  disprove  this  fallacy, 
and  so  far  as  this  portion  of  homoeopathy  is  concerned, 
ought  to  be  and  are  sufficient  to  kill  it,  even  if  all  the 
other  proofs  were  wanting.  These  high  potencies  by 
triturations  are  still  manufactured  and  sold,  however,  by 
the  homoeopathic  pharmacists. 

The  subject  of  dilutions  and  triturations,  together  with 
the  proposed  development  of  a  dynamic  power  by  agita- 
tion, has  always  been  assailed  by  ridicule  by  its  opponents, 
and  really  no  serious  arguments  have  ever  been  used 
against  it;  it  having  been  considered  a  delusion  un- 
worthy of  their  attention.  This  is  wrong.  Homoeopathy 
has  a  respectable  following,  both  in  numbers  and  intelli- 
gence, and  consequently  is  entitled  to  serious  considera- 
tion, and  its  claims  must  be  met  and  controverted  by 
something  in  the  way  of  arguments  more  solid  than 
ridicule. 

The  question  as  to  whether  a  dynamic  force  is  de- 
veloped during  the  process  of  dilution,  is  not  so  easily 


148  MEDICAL   HEKESIES. 

disposed  of  as  the  same  question  applied  to  trituration ; 
for  in  that  case  the  division  and  consequent  attenuation 
necessary  to  produce  it  (as  claimed  by  Hahnemann)  does 
not  take  place;  but  during  the  process  of  dilution  the 
attenuation  does  take  place ;  but  does  it,  or  can  it  create 
or  develop  a  dynamic  power  not  resident  in  the  matter 
itself? 

This  is  the  great  question  in  homoeopathy.  The 
whole  system  hinges  upon  the  truth  or  fallacy  of  this 
proposition;  for  if  these  dilutions  have  no  effect  as 
physical  agents,  and  this  dynamic  power  is  not  developed, 
the  law  of  "  Similia  similibus  curantur"  is  necessarily  a 
piece  of  folly,  for,  as  I  have  shown,  medicines  cannot  be 
prescribed  in  appreciable  quantities  in  accordance  with 
that  law. 

This  question  needs  no  further  discussion  to  convince 
those  of  its  falsity  who  believe  in  the  correlation,  con- 
servation and  unity  of  force.  Force  is  an  attribute  of 
matter  and  cannot  be  developed  without  it.  It  is  also  as 
persistent  and  eternal  as  matter  itself.  The  amount  of 
force  present  in  any  given  case  depends  upon  the  material 
agencies  brought  into  play  in  producing  it.  One  hun- 
dred pounds  of  coal  will  produce  more  heat  than  fifty ; 
a  thirty-cell  battery  will  give  a  stronger  electric  cur- 
rent than  one  of  twenty  cells ;  one  hundred  pounds  of 
steam  has  more  power  than  fifty,  and  so  on ;  and  yet 
homoeopathists,  in  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  of  the 
nineteenth   century,  ask   us   to   believe   that  they  are 


MATHEMATICAL   DEMONSTRATION.  149 

developing  a  dynamic  power  at  the  same  time  they  are 
diminishing  their  materials  ninety-nine  per  cent,  at  each 
successive  dilution. 

But  Hahnemann  says  the  shakings  produce  this 
power.  (See  page  221  of  the  Organon,  already  quoted 
on  page  107.) 

If  a  continuous  shaking  of  half  an  hour  enhances 
the  power  of  the  medicine  thirty  fold,  it  will  be  neces- 
sary to  exercise  great  care  in  its  transportation  from 
place  to  place,  and  persons  who  expect  to  practice  in  the 
country  will  have  to  calculate  what  the  effect  of  a  hard 
day's  ride  over  a  rough  road,  on  a  trotting  horse,  may 
have  on  their  physic. 

Where  does  this  force  come  from  ?  Hahnemann  does 
not  certainly  claim  that  the  force  liberated  by  the  strokes 
of  the  arm  is  absorbed  and  bottled  up  with  the  hundred 
drops  of  alcohol  in  the  vial !  If  it  is,  Boericke  and  Tafel, 
in  using  "  twelve  powerful  strokes  with  each  potency," 
would  evolve  sufficient  force  before  they  reached  their 
one-thousandth  potency  to  destroy  any  patient  to  whom 
it  might  be  administered.  But  these  "  powerful  strokes" 
are  made  by  hand.  It  is  an  interesting  calculation  to 
those  of  a  mathematical  turn  of  mind  to  determine  the 
exact  number  of  strokes  required  to  carry  one  drop  of  a 
mother-tincture  up  as  high  as  the  one-thousandth  po- 
tency, or  determine  the  strength  of  the  dose  which  this 
potency  contains.  I  began  this  calculation  and  carried 
it  up  to  the  thirtieth  dilution,  and  here  is  the  result. 


150  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

Take,  for  instance,  one  drop  of  this  mother-tincture ; 
this  is  mixed  with  99  drops  of  alcohol,  contained  in  a 
vial,  and  having  received  twelve  strokes  is  called  the 
first  dilution.  The  second  dilution  will  consist  of  100 
vials  and  1200  strokes.  In  the  third  dilution  we  will 
have  10,000  vials  with  120,000  strokes.  With  the  fourth 
dilution  we  will  have  1,000,000  vials  with  12,000,000 
strokes.  The  fifth  dilution,  will  be  contained  in  100,- 
000,000  vials  and  will  have  received  1,200,000,000 
strokes.  With  the  sixth  dilution  we  will  have  10,000,- 
000,000  vials  with  120,000,000,000  strokes.  With  the 
seventh  dilution  there  will  be  1,000,000,000,000  vials 
with  12,000,000,000,000  strokes.  With  the  eighth 
dilution  there  will  be  100,000,000,000,000  vials  with 
1,200,000,000,000,000  strokes.  The  ninth  dilution  will 
consist  of  10,000,000,000,000,000  vials  with  120,000,- 
000,000,000,000  strokes.  The  tenth  dilution  will  be 
contained  in  1,000,000,000,000,000,000  vials  with  12,- 
000,000,000,000,000,000  strokes.  It  is  certainly  un- 
necesssary  to  pursue  the  steps  of  this  calculation  any 
further,  for  it  will  be  seen  that  it  soon  rises  into  infinity. 
When  the  thirtieth  dilution  is  reached  there  will  be  on 
hand  the  enormous  number  of  10,000,000,000,000,000,- 
000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000,  - 
000,000,000  of  vials  with  twelve  times  that  number  of 
strokes. 

It  is  beyond  my  power  to  enumerate  -this  immense 
number.     With  no  time  for  setting  down  a  vial  and 


MATHEMATICAL  DEMONSTRATION.  151 

picking  up  another,  an  active  man  can  make  one 
"powerful  stroke"  per  second,  or  sixty  strokes  per 
minute,  or  360  strokes  per  hour;  and  by  making  ten 
hours  per  day  he  would  make  in  that  time  3600;  and 
by  working  each  day  in  the  year,  including  Sunday,  he 
would  in  that  length  of  time  accomplish  1,314,000 
strokes.  To  give  each  one  of  these  vials  containing  the 
thirtieth  potency  twelve  strokes,  it  would  require  him  to 
work  661  quadrillions,  822  trillions,  919  billions,  336 
millions  and  1050  decillions  of  years. 

If  each  dilution  was  placed  in  a  separate  vial,  on  end, 
in  a  line,  and  each  occupied  a  half  inch  of  space,  the 
line  would  extend  63  sextillions,  131  quintillions,  313 
quadrillions,  131  trillions,  313  billions,  131  millions, 
313  thousand,  131  miles  and  1653  feet. 

Estimating  the  distance  to  the  sun  as  90  millions  of 
miles,  a  man  would  be  required  to  make  the  round  trip 
350  quintillions,  729  quadrillions,  517  trillions,  396 
billions,  285  millions,  72  thousand,  961  times,  in  order 
to  reach  these  vials,  so  placed. 

If  each  vial  weighed  a  half  ounce  (16  ounces  to  the 
pound),  the  whole  number  would  weigh,  156  sextillions, 
250  quintillions  of  tons  (2000  lbs.  to  the  ton),  sufficient 
to  load  15  sextillions,  625  quintillions  of  railroad  cars, 
of  10  tons  each  ;  or  3  quintillions,  906  quadrillions, 
250  trillions  of  trains,  of  40  cars  each.  If  the  cars 
were  25  feet  long,  and  made  up  into  trains  100  miles 
long,  there  would  be  739  quadrillions,  820  trillions,  71 


152  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

billions,  22  millions,  722  thousand,  537  trains  and  1856 
cars. 

To  manufacture  the  quantity  contained  in  the  above 
mentioned  number  of  vials,  there  would  be  required  11 
sextillions,  10  quintillions,  744  quadrillions,  186  tril- 
lions, 46  billions,  511  millions,  627  thousand,  906 
hogsheads  (of  140  gallons  each),  1  pint  and  2  ounces  of 
alcohol.  Suppose  there  were  500  millions  of  people 
living  in  the  world  at  one  time,  and  each  person  should 
use  a  pint  of  this  medicine  daily,  it  would  require  123 
trillions,  203  billions,  348  millions,  833  thousand,  229 
years  to  use  up  the  result  of  one  drop  of  a  mother 
tincture,  diluted  to  the  thirtieth  potency,  and  still  leave 
unused,  11,627,360  pints,  sufficient  to  consume  the  time 
from  the  foundation  of  the  world  to  the  present  time 
and  also  a  very  liberal  slice  off  eternity. 

If  this  be  true  in  regard  to  this  potency,  how  can  the 
number  of  years  be  computed  which  would  be  required 
to  raise  a  remedy  to  the  one  thousandth  potency  ?  Yet 
this  vast  number  of  years  does  not  include  those  spent 
on  the  potencies  preceding  the  thirtieth.  Just  think  of 
it !  If  Adam  had  begun  this  agitation  the  day  God 
made  him,  and  had  worked  faithfully  ten  hours  per  day, 
he  would  still  be  shaking,  away  below  the  tenth  dilu- 
tion, and  yet  all  this  shaking  is  for  the  purpose  of 
dynamizing  one  drop  of  the  mother-tincture. 

In  the  face  of  this  calculation  the  principal  homoeo- 
pathic pharmaceutical  establishment  in  the  United  States 


THERAPEUTIC  FORCES.  153 

advertise  that  they  have  carried  up  to  the  two  hundredth 
potency  two  hundred  and  fifty  remedies ;  one  hundred 
and  fifty  to  the  five  hundredth,  and  one  hundred  to  the 
one  thousandth  potency,  by  hand,  giving  each  potency 
twelve  powerful  strokes ;  and  by  using  a  steam  tritura- 
tion apparatus  they  are  enabled  to  accord  two  full  hours 
to  each  potency. 

Can  it  be  that  the  fool-killer  has  visited  this  planet 
since  Hahnemann  proposed  this  theory? 

To  the  mind  of  a  person  having  any  knowledge  of 
the  modus  operandi  of  medicine,  it  would  be  unnecessary 
to  ask  the  question  as  to  whether  these  attenuations  have 
any  influence  on  the  system  for  good  or  evil  ?  He 
would  answer  you  immediately,  that  they  were  of  no  use 
whatever  as  remedial  agencies.  The  fact  has  been  de- 
monstrated long  ago,  and  the  subject  has  ceased  to  be 
discussed  in  our  modern  works  on  materia  medica,  that 
medicines  are  absorbed  into  the  circulation  and  act  as 
material  substances  or  agents,  impressing  the  system  and 
acting  upon  the  different  tissues  and  organs  of  the  body, 
in  direct  proportion  to  their-  power  in  altering  or  chang- 
ing molecular  action ;  in  other  words,  they  act  by  their 
presence ;  retard,  arrest  or  promote  physiological,  chemi- 
cal and  mechanical  changes ;  in  fact,  they  are  simply 
forces,  and  exert  an  influence  for  good  or  evil  in  propor- 
tion to  their  presence  as  such.  Some  of  them  retard  the 
metamorphosis  of  tissue  and  arrest  or  modify  the  ame- 
boid motion  of  certain  cells  of  the  body,  by  their  mere 


154  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

presence.  This  class  of  remedies  interferes  with  nutri- 
tion and  lowers  the  temperature  of  the  body;  others 
accelerate  these  changes  and  have  the  contrary  effect,  in 
a  slight  degree,  upon  the  activity  of  molecular  change, 
and  consequently  elevate  the  temperature  to  a  slight 
degree,  though  scarcely  appreciable ;  others  combine 
chemically  with  certain  tissues  and  organs. 

I  cannot  introduce  the  proofs  of  the  statements  here, 
but  I  will  refer  the  reader  to  the  current  works  on 
materia  medica,  and  especially  to  Headland's  excellent 
work  upon  the  Modus  Operandi  of  Medicine. 

Now,  if  medicines  are  absorbed  into  the  circulation, 
and  I  presume  no  one  will  question  it,  what  force  can 
be  exerted  by  such  an  infinitely  small  atom  of  matter  as 
is  contained  in  any  of  these  high  potencies  ?  An  ordin- 
ary blood  corpuscle  would  absorb  millions  of  them  and 
not  sensibly  increase  in  size  or  weight  by  the  process. 

But,  say  the  homoeopathists,  we  know  that  these  at- 
tenuations do  not  act  as  physical  or  chemical  agents,  but 
they  have  a  dynamic  force  or  power,  and  it  is  to  this 
fact  that  they  owe  their  efficiency  as  therapeutical  agents. 
Very  well ;  let  us  look  at  the  subject  from  that  stand- 
point. If  they  have  a  dynamic  power,  they  ought  to  be 
able  to  effect  the  system  dynamically.  I  have  already 
stated  that  the  vital  force  can  be  affected  only  by  effect- 
ing changes  in  the  molecular  constituents  of  the  body. 
The  easiest  way  to  measure  this  change  will  be  by  the 
thermometer,  as  the  manifestations  of  force,  such  as  heat, 


ANTIPYRETIC   MEDICINES.  155 

light,  electricity  and  motion  all  mean  one  and  the  same 
thing. 

If  these  medicines  have  any  power  at  all,  they  will 
elevate  or  lower  the  temperature  of  the  body.  It  is  not 
necessary  for  me  to  state  that  they  have  no  such  power ; 
right  here  this  point  can  be  settled  once  and  forever. 
The  clinical  thermometer  is  alone  sufficient,  if  all  other 
evidences  were  wanting,  to  forever  silence  this  nonsensi- 
cal twaddle  of  homceopathists  in  regard  to  the  dynamic 
power  of  their  attenuated  medicines.  In  order  to  com- 
plete my  argument,  let  me  state  what  is  now  known  to 
be  a  clinical  fact.  In  all  the  acute  infectious  diseases, 
which  are  characterized  by  high  temperature,  the  danger 
to  life  arises  from  the  persistency  of  this  elevated  tem- 
perature. This  causes  death  directly,  by  producing 
paralysis  of  the  heart  and  brain ;  and  indirectly,  by  pro- 
ducing congestion,  inflammation  and  degeneration  of 
vital  organs. 

Hence,  since  the  discovery  of  this  fact  it  has  been  an 
object  of  research  to  find  remedies  which  would  control 
this  high  febrile  condition  and  lower  the  temperature 
as  nearly  to  the  normal  as  possible.  Careful  and  numer- 
ous  experiments  conducted  for  this  purpose  have  dis- 
closed the  fact  that  large  quantities  of  remedial  agents 
have  to  be  administered  in  order  to  accomplish  this 
result ;  ten  grains  of  quinia  will  not  lower  the  tempera- 
ture of  a  typhoid  patient,  neither  will  twenty  grains ; 
but  from  thirty  to  forty  grains  will  reduce  it,  if  admin- 


156  MEDICAL   HEEESIES. 

istered  at  the  proper  time  and  in  a  proper  manner, 
nearly,  if  not  quite,  to  the  normal. 

I  challenge  homoeopathy  to  produce  a  remedy,  above 
the  second  potency  (centisimal  scale),  which  will  reduce 
the  temperature  in  well  marked  cases  of  typhoid  fever 
below  ninety-nine  degrees,  any  time  during  the  first  or 
second  week,  or  the  first  half  of  the  third  week  of  the 
disease ;  and  I  will  agree  to  furnish  the  patient  myself, 
the  medicines  to  be  prepared  and  administered  in  the 
presence  of  responsible  parties  of  both  schools.  I  wish 
to  stipulate,  however,  that  this  experiment  shall  not  be 
continued  sufficiently  long  to  jeopardy  the  life  of  the 
patient.  Rational  treatment  lowers  the  temperature  in 
these  cases  in  a  few  hours,  say  from  105°  to  100°  or 
under. 

Homoeopathy  cannot  avail  itself  of  the  antipyretic 
treatment  in  acute  infectious  diseases ;  none  of  its  atten- 
uations can  lower  the  temperature  of  fever  patients  even 
the  fractional  part  of  a  degree  ;  and  as  the  influence  on 
the  temperature  is  the  easiest  way  that  we  could  estimate 
its  dynamic  power,  the  conclusion  that  they  possess  no 
such  power  is  certainly  not  unreasonable.  Neither  do 
any  of  these  dilutions  possess  the  power  of  elevating  the 
temperature  of  the  body. 

Hahnemann  says  that : — 

"  Almost  every  drug,  in  its  pure  effect,  produces  a 
specific,  distinct  kind  of  fever,  and  even  a  species  of  in- 
termittent fever  with  its  alternating  stages,  differing  from 
fevers  produced  by  other  drugs."* 
*  Page  168  of  the  Organon. 


THE   LAW  OF  SIMILARS  AT  FAULT.  157 

This  is  one  of  Hahnemann's  most  serious  mistakes, 
and  has  contributed  largely  in  leading  him  into  many 
of  his  errors.  It  has  been  shown  recently,  by  numerous 
observations  with  the  thermometer,  that  few  drugs,  if 
any,  possess  the  power  of  elevating  the  temperature  of 
the  human  body;  on  the  contrary,  all  the  drugs  which 
were  supposed  formerly  to  do  so,  such  as  quinia,  brandy, 
etc.,  have  a  contrary  effect.  Belladonna  seems,  however, 
to  elevate  the  temperature  a  fraction  of  a  degree,  but 
further  observations  are  necessary  to  confirm  this  state- 
ment, as  the  slight  rise  occasionally  observed  heretofore 
may  have  been  owing  to  some  other  cause.* 

Now  if  no  medicine,  even  in  appreciable  quantities, 
will  elevate  the  temperature  of  the  human  body,  what 
becomes  of  the  law  of  similars  in  regard  to  fevers? 
Where  will  a  medicine  be  found  that  will  produce  a 
similitude  of  symptoms  in  a  case  of  fever  without  eleva- 
tion of  temperature  ?  For  certainly  no  disease  is  similar 
to  fever  without  an  elevation  of  temperature. 

But,  says  the  homoeopathist,  we  care  nothing  about 
the  elevation  of  temperature ;  we  make  up  our  "totality 
of  symptoms"  from  the  "disordered  sensorial  condition" 
of  the  patient ;  and  by  removing  this  "  totality  of  symp- 
toms," we  remove  the  cause  together  with  the  disease. 

My  reply  to  this  is  that  the  disordered  sensorial  con- 

*  Vide  St.  Louis  Medical  and  Surgical  Journal,  Sept.  5,  1880. 
Observations  by  the  author  upon  the  influence  of  hypodermic 
injections  of  Sulph.  Atropine  upon  the  temperature  during  the 
treatment  of  sciatica  by  this  process. 


158  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

dition  of  the  patient  is  a  result  of  the  fever  and  not  the 
cause,  and  the  most  rational  method  of  removing  it  is  to 
cool  the  fever,  and  this,  in  fact,  proves,  by  observation, 
to  be  the  case ;  for  these  symptoms  always  disappear 
with  the  fever,  whether  the  result  of  treatment  or  by  the 
unaided  efforts  of  nature.  Hence,  I  claim  that  observa- 
tions with  the  clinical  thermometer,  while  experimenting 
with  drugs,  prove  clearly  that  homoeopathic  remedies 
have  no  influence,  either  as  physical  or  dynamical 
agents ;  and  also,  that  it  further  demonstrates  the  folly 
of  the  so-called  law  of  similars,  so  far  as  fevers  are  con- 
cerned ;  for  who  ever  saw  a  drug-disease  similar  to  a 
fever  without  the  elevation  of  temperature  ?  In  fact, 
the  only  condition  necessary  in  fever — the  disease  itself — 
consists  in  an  elevation  of  temperature,  caused  by  a 
rapid  oxidation  of  the  tissues  of  the  body ;  all  others  are 
superadded. 


HOMCEOPATHIC  SCHISMS.  159 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Discussion  of  Homoeopathy  Continued. 

In  the  preceding  chapters  I  have  presented  a  fair 
discussion  of  the  leading  principles  of  homoeopathy,  as 
taught  by  Hahnemann  himself;  and  in  order  that  I 
might  not  be  accused  of  misrepresentation,  I  have  quoted 
his  exact  words,  rather  freely  on  some  points,  and  have 
shown  a  few  of  the  leading  objections  to  his  system,  as 
they  occurred  to  my  mind. 

i  shall  now  proceed  to  show  by  quotations  from  the 
current  homoeopathic  literature  of  the  day  that  there  is 
quite  a  respectable  number  of  homoeopath ists  who  have 
arrived  at  the  same  conclusion  as  myself  in  regard  to 
high  dilutions,  and  that  some  of  them  have  also  aban- 
doned the  law  of  "  Sim  ilia  similibus  curantur." 

There  has  been  a  war  raging  in  the  homoeopathic 
camp  for  a  number  of  years,  between  low  and  high 
dilutionists,  with  a  steady  gain  by  the  latter.  In  some 
parts  of  Europe  even  the  name  of  homoeopathists  has 
been  discarded,  and  they  now  call  their  system  "  The 
Specific  School  of  Medicine." 

As  long  ago  as  1847,  M.  Rapou,  who  was  a  great 
admirer  of  Hahnemann,  and  a  homoeopathist,  published 
a  work,  called  the  "  Homoeopathic  Doctrine,"  in  which 
he  says : — 


160  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

"  The  law  of  similars  is  positive,  but  it  does  not  con- 
stitute the  general  law  of  therapeutics.  Medicamental 
substances  may  operate  by  the  law  of  contraries.  Anti- 
pathy is  as  often  in  play  as  homoeopathy ;  both  are 
secondary  and  accessory  modes.  The  great  principle  is 
the  specificity,  and  the  most  important  problem  is  not  to 
see  the  similarity  between  the  remedy  and  the  disease, 
but  to  find,  directly,  the  specific  appropriate  to  each 
morbid  state.  Dynamization  does  not  exist  even  where, 
by  many,  its  importance  has  been  greatly  exaggerated. 
Dilution  is  incapable  of  developing  a  medicamental 
efficaciousness  in  most  substances  which  are  inert  in  their 
natural  state,  and  which  Hahnemann  has  put  among 
the  number  of  active  remedies.  Infinitesimal  doses 
have  no  marked  action ;  it  is  necessary,  ordinarily,  to 
employ  tinctures  and  powders,  and  never  extend  them 
beyond  the  third  or  fourth  divisions.  Our  medicines 
may  be  administered  without  inconvenience  in  the  ordfh- 
ary  pharmaceutical  preparations,  and  the  various  allo- 
pathic remedies  may  be  employed  conveniently  with 
them.  Clinics  must  become  the  principal  source  of 
indications,  and  concur,  in  the  largest  degree,  to  the 
formation  of  our  pure  materia  medica.  This  last  part 
of  science  is  to  be  reconstructed;  an  anatomical  and 
physiological  classification  of  symptoms  must  be  intro- 
duced into  it.  The  theory  of  psora  and  its  pretended 
consequences  is  false  in  all  respects.  We  can  and  we 
must  seek  to  combine  the  specific  procedure  with  the 
usual  indications.  It  is  proper  to  fall  back  to  the  use 
of  pharmaceutical  mixtures." 

This  question  is  a  fruitful  theme  for  discussion  at  the 
meeting  of  almost  every  homoeopathic  association.  At 
the  meeting  of  the  Illinois  Homoeopathic  Medical  Asso- 
ciation, for  1878,  a  paper  was  read  before  the  Bureau  of 
Materia  Medica  on  "  The  Causes  of  the  Division  in  our 
Ranks."     During  the  discussion  of   this  paper  a  great 


DIVERSE    OPINIONS.  161 

variety  of  opinions  were  expressed  in  regard  to  the  law 
of  similars  and  high  and  low  potencies,  and  to  an  un- 
prejudiced outsider  it  would  seem  that  the  cardinal 
principles  of  homoeopathy  are  now  interpreted  to  mean 
everythiug  or  anything,  to  suit  the  fancy  of  any  partic- 
ular individual. 

We  quote  the  following  from  the   Medical  Investi- 
gator, of  July  15th,  1878:— 

"The  characteristic  symptoms  in  Hahnemann's  Materia 
Medica  are  those  of  the  primary  symptoms  of  drugs, 
and  seven-tenths  of  the  symptoms  in  the  chronic  dis- 
eases are  also  primary.  This  was  what  caused  Hahne- 
mann to  go  higher  and  higher  in  his  attenuations  in  order 
to  avoid  aggravations  and  make  good  cures.  But 
secondary  symptoms  are  just  as  important  and  valuable 
as  primary ;  and  if  we  fully  understand  their  import- 
ance we  shall  be  just  as  successful  when  selecting  remedies 
from  their  secondary  symptoms  as  when  we  select  them 
from  their  primary.  Those  who  do  not  appreciate  this 
fact  suppose  that  when  a  material  dose  is  used  the  effect 
is  palliative  or  antipathic.  Such  is  not  the  case.  A 
medicine  is  homoeopathic  to  disease,  whether  selected 
from  its  primary  or  secondary  effects.  For  example: 
Camphor  is  primarily  homoeopathic  to  cerebral  conges- 
tion and  spasms,  and  in  such  cases  high  potencies  should 
be  used.  The  secondary  effects  of  camphor  are  those 
resembling  cholera,  therefore  camphor  does  no  good  in 
choleraic  symptoms  unless  given  in  appreciable  doses. 
Aconite  is  primarily  homoeopathic  to  chill  with  vaso- 
motor spasm,  secondarily  to  fever,  active  congestion  and 
inflammation.  To  be  successful  with  aconite  the  higher 
dilutions  should  be  given  in  the  cold  stage,  and  low 
dilutions  in  the  hot  stage,  of  fevers.  Then  there  are 
often  cases  of  disease  where  the  patient  is  suffering  from 
such  unutterable  anguish  and  pain  that  no  time  can  be 
ii 


162  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

spared  to  select  the  true  similium,  and  we  are  driven 
by  every  prompting  of  humanity  to  give  a  palliative,  as 
opium,  or  some  anaesthetic.  Bat  to  cure  our  patients  we 
must  give  a  remedy  that  is  primarily  or  secondarily 
homoeopathic  to  the  case.  No  medicine  can  cure  unless 
it  is  homoeopathic.  The  law  of  similia  is  the  universal 
law  of  cure.  All  the  real  cures  made  by  Allopathists 
are  owing  to  the  homceopathicity  of  the  drug  or  drugs 
given.  It  is  a  mistake  to  claim  that  Hahnemann's 
great  cures  were  made  with  high  dilutions.  Some  of 
his  best  cures  were  made  with  crude  doses,  as  will  be 
seen  by  reference  to  his  lesser  writings.  The  author 
of  this  paper  may  suppose  that  opium  is  only  palliative 
for  diarrhoea,  but  opium  causes  diarrhoea  secondarily. 
It  often  cures  painful  diarrhoea  by  its  secondary  action, 
for  Hahnemann  says  all  the  pains  of  opium  are  its 
secondary  effects.  I  might  go  on  indefinitely,  to  show 
where  the  secondary  action  of  drugs  is  not  taken  ad- 
vantage of  by  our  school.  If  they  understood  this 
action,  and  the  law  of  dose  which  belongs  to  it,  they 
would  not  talk  so  much  about  palliatives,  but  claim  all 
cures,  rightfully,  as  belonging  to  us." 

This  explanation  is  certainly  sufficiently  flexible  to 
explain  the  modus  operandi  of  all  remedies,  and  leaves 
nothing  further  to  be  desired. 

The  next  speaker  says  : — 

"  I  was  never  good  at  splitting  hairs  when  a  young  man, 
and  I  am  too  old  to  learn  now.  Thirty-four  years  ago 
I  first  adopted  homoeopathic  principles.  My  preceptor 
used  the  low  potencies,  from  the  third  to  the  sixth,  and 
I  got  to  using  them.  I  have  not  cured  all  my  cases  ; 
some  died  in  spite  of  my  treatment,  and  many  got  well 
in  spite  of  my  treatment.  When  sent  for,  I  try  to  re- 
lieve, and  if  I  know  anything  that  will  relieve,  I  do 
not  hesitate  to  give  it.  I  often  give  morphine,  and  after- 
wards give  atropine  or  nux  vom.    I  claim  to  be  a  strong 


DIVERSE  OPINIONS.  163 

homoeopath,  but  I  have  not  cured  ovarian  tumors  with 
the  hundred  thousandth  of  kali  bichrvmicum,  but  I  have 
cured  ovaritis  with  atropia,  and  when  the  fever  runs 
very  high,  aconite,  every  hour  till  the  fever  passes  off  or 

sensibly  remits." 
• 

The  next  speaker  says — 

"  Dr.  H.  has  expressed  my  sentiments  exactly.  It  is 
not  a  question  of  potency  ;  it  is  a  question  of  curing  the 

patient When   we  are  called  to 

a  patient  it  is  our  duty  to  relieve  his  sufferings  as 
quickly  as  possible ;  but  should  we  give  morphine  f 
What  is  the  effect  of  morphine  f  Its  effect  is  to  deaden 
the  nervous  system  so  that  it  cannot  feel  pain.  Pain  is 
the  voice  of  nature  crying  for  relief,  and  is  the  true 
physician's  best  guide  to  the  seat  and  character  of  the 
cause  of  the  pain  ;  deadening  the  nervous  system  by 
morphine,  or  any  of  its  equivalents,  is  virtually  choking 
off  nature's  voice  calling  to  us  for  relief,  and  pointing 
to  the  spot  where  she  suffers,  thus  leaving  us  to  work  in 
the  dark." 

"  Better  let  the  patient  suffer  a  little  while  than  to 
complicate  the  troubles  and  retard  the  final  recovery,  or 
risk  the  patient's  life  by  paralyzing  the  governor,  the 

nervous  system,  with  mmyhia I 

condemn  the  use  of  morphine  in  these  cases.  Morphine 
is  only  useful  as  a  dernier  ressort,  a  last  means,  when 
you  acknowledge  yourself  beaten.  In  curable  cases  it 
is  almost  criminal  to  give  morphia." 

The  next  speaker  expresses  himself  to  the  effect  that 

"  properly  selected  remedies  do  not  fail,  and  I  have  the 
first  time  to  be  driven  to  any  other  resort  than  the 
homoeopathic  remedy." 

Dr.  T.  says : — 

"  In  my  early  education  in  the  science  of  homoeo- 
pathy I  was  taught  to  use  the  lowest  potencies ;   mother 


164  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

tinctures,  etc.;  also,  to  alternate  ;  and  my  preceptor  was 
a  strong  advocate  of  both  these  features,  remaining  so 

until  his  death Experience  soon 

demonstrated  this  method  the  better  way.  My  first  cure 
made  was  one  of  fetid  catarrh,  of  many  years'  standing, 
with  two  or  three  doses  of  Silica  200.  I  continued  thus, 
mostly  in  the  chronic  cases,  with  much  better  results. 
I  do  not  confine  myself  to  the  high  potencies  now,  ex- 
clusively, but  also  use  low,  and  exceptionally  the  tinc- 
ture, but  always  use  the  single  remedy." 

(i  The  paper  charges  criminality,  and  arrogance,  as 
before  remarked,  but  if  I  can  prove  by  practical  demon- 
stration that  I  can  cure  diseases  with  the  single  remedy, 
I  would  ask  the  question:  Is  there  not  more  certainty 
in  thus  prescribing,  than  where  two  or  more  remedies 
are  administered  ?  If  I  impart  such  knowledge  to  a 
brother  practitioner,  and  try  to  show  him  the  better 
system,  and  to  my  mind  the  more  certain  way,  am  I  to 
be  charged  with  ignorance,  arrogance  and  criminality  ? 
On  the  other  hand,  should  the  patient  die  while  under 
the  administration  of  a  high  potency,  well  selected  and 
according  to  the  law  of  similars,' and  to  the  best  of  my 
judgment,  I  do  not  imagine,  nor  am  I  criminal,  arrogant, 
nor  yet  censurable,  much  less  ignorant." 

This  is  sufficiently  liberal  to  suit  the  most  unreason- 
able Eclectic  in  the  whole  country. 
Dr.  B.  says : — 

"I  wish  to  plead  guilty  to  this  charge.  I  am 
a  homoeopath,  and  emphatically  announce  myself  as 
such  ;  but  I  am  not  a  homoeopath  according  to  that 
paper.  There  are  many  points  in  Dr.  Ws,  paper 
that  I  would  like  to  answer,  but  as  I  cannot  do  so 
without  getting  mad,  I  will  let  them  pass.  But  I 
will  say  that  a  man  holding  the  position  of  professor  of 
materia  medica  in  a  homoeopathic  medical  college,  who 
tells  the  students  that  fifteen  minutes  is  all  the  time 
required    to    make   a   homoeopathic   trituration,  shows 


DIVERSE    OPINIONS.  165 

mighty  little  grace  in  denouncing  as  fools  those  who  are 
trying  to  follow  Hahnemann's  teachings." 

Dr.  T.  says : — 

"  There  is  one  point  in  this  paper  to  which  I 
would  like  to  call  attention:  That  we  are  not  to 
rely  upon  homoeopathic-  treatment  in  desperate  cases. 
If  the  homoeopathic  law  of  cure  is  true,  it  is  in  just  such 
bad  cases  that  we  should  depend  on  the  law,  and  see 
with  our  greatest  knowledge  to  apply  this  law  with 
exactitude.  We  have  no  time  in  these  cases  to  dally 
writh  empiricism,  while  we  have  a  law  to  guide  us ;  less 
dangerous  cases  will  answer  for  such  experiments.  If 
you  have  a  severe  case  of  pleurisy,  by  all  means  treat  it 
homceopathically,  affiliating  your  remedies  with  great 
care.  Even  in  uterine  hemorrhage  homoeopathy  has 
not  left  me  in  the  lurch  yet.  I  have  yet  to  lose  one 
case  of  uterine  hemorrhage,  and  I  have  had  cases  des- 
perate enough  to  frighten  any  one." 

Dr.  C.  says : — 

"This  discussion  seems  rather  profitless.  We  have 
discussed  this  matter  every  year  for  twenty-four  years, 
and  wre  cannot  agree  any  more  than  two  men  are  psy- 
chologically alike.  It  is  our  boast  that  we  should  have 
liberty  in  certain  things.  I  hope  the  committee  on  the 
president's  address  wrill  be  allowed  to  report,  and  so 
close  this  discussion,  which  may  last  all  day." 

The  following  report  on  homoeopathy  was  made : — 

"  Your  committee  believe  that  the  'great  trial  of 
Homoeopathy'  has  long  since  been  successfully  passed. 
It  has  no  longer  danger  to  apprehend  from  its  enemies. 
Its  only  dangers,  if  any,  will  proceed  from  its  own 
household.  Declaratory,  declamatory,  and  defamatory 
resolutions  concerning  principles  fixed  as  the  immutable 
hills  are  impolitic,  unwise  and  degrading.  Independ- 
ence of  thought  and  action  is  and  should  be  as  inalien- 
able to  medical  as  to  political  citizens. 


166  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

"  The  spirit  of  the  address  meets  our  hearty  approval. 
Respectfully  submitted,  Committee." 

The  following  resolution  was  offered,  discussed  and 
tabled : — 

"  Resolvedj  That,  as  an  association  having  for  its 
object  all  investigations  and  other  labors  which  may 
contribute  to  the  formation  of  medical  science,  we  hereby 
declare  our  firm  belief  in  the  principle  "  similia  similibus 
curantur"  as  constituting  the  best  general  guide  in  the 
selection  of  remedies,  and  fully  intend  to  carry  out 
this  principle  to  the  best  of  our  ability;  this  belief  does 
not  debar  us  from  recognizing  and  making  use  of  the 
results  of  any  experience,  and  we  shall  exercise  and 
defend  the  inviolable  right  of  every  educated  physician 
to  make  practical  use  of  any  established  principle  in 
medical  science,  or  of  any  therapeutical  facts  founded 
on  experience,  and  verified  by  experiments,  so  far  as  in 
his  individual  judgment  they  shall  tend  to  promote  the 
welfare  of  those  under  his  professional  care." 

By  tabling  this  resolution  this  body  of  learned  homceo- 
pathists  placed  itself  in  the  absurd  position  of  refusing 
to  indorse  its  own  fundamental  principle,  "Similia  simili- 
bus curantur"  The  same  action  also  refuses  to  indorse 
the  liberal  proposition  enunciated  in  the  latter  portion  of 
the  resolution ;  so  it  is  impossible  to  tell  just  what 
homoeopathy  means  in  the  State  of  Illinois. 

The  Homoeopathic  Medical  Society  of  New  York 
appears  to  be  involved  in  the  same  or  a  similar  difficulty, 
judging  from  resolutions  which  were  reported  at  the 
meeting  of  1879.  It  appears,  from  the  tenor  of  these 
resolutions,  that  the  meeting  for  the  preceding  year  had 
passed  others  of  quite  a  different  character.     Not  hav- 


POSITION  OF  THE  SCHOOL  IN  NEW  YORK.        167 

ing  the  published  proceedings  of  that  year  in  my  posses- 
sion, I  can  only  infer  their  nature  from  those  passed  in 
1879.  We  insert  the  report  of  the  committee  to  which 
was  referred  the  preambles  and  resolutions  adopted  at 
the  last  annual  meeting,  brought  before  the  society  upon 
a  motion  to  rescind  and  expunge  from  the  records  those 
passed  the  year  before  : — 

"  Your  committee,  representing  the  extremes  of  our 
school,  both  in  practice  and  views,  have  unanimously 
agreed  to  present  the  following  paper.  They  ask  for  its 
careful  and  liberal  consideration.  They  hope  it  may  be 
received  by  the  society,  ordered  to  be  printed,  and  sent 
to  every  homoeopathic  physician  of  the  State. 

"  They  suggest  that  the  committee,  or  their  successors, 
be  continued  during  the  year ;  that  the  chairman  be  the 
medium  of  correspondence  with  any  member  of  the 
profession  who  may  desire  so  to  do ;  and  that  their  final 
report  be  made  to  the  society  at  the  afternoon  session  of 
the  first  day  of  the  meeting  of  1880. 

"  Whereas,  The  resolution  passed  by  this  society  at 
its  last  annual  meeting  does  not  justly  express  the  views 
of  our  school,  and  is  calculated  to  place  us  in  a  false 
position  before  the  world, 

"  Therefore,  We,  the  members  of  said  society,  deem  it 
expedient  to  put  upon  record  the  following  avowal  of 
our  position : — 

"First.  That  we  adhere  to  the  formula,  'similia  simili- 
biis  curantur,'  as  enunciating  the  great  therapeutic  law 
for  the  treatment  of  disease.  Evolved  by  induction, 
formulated  by  the  venerable  Hahnemann,  tested  and 
approved  by  thousands  of  physicians  during  scores  of 
years,  we  are  assured  that,  with  our  increased  knowledge 
of  the  Materia  Medica,  we  shall  be  able  to  demonstrate 
more  fully  its  universality  as  a  therapeutic  law,  and  show 
in  a  more  perfect  manner  its  harmony  with  other  and 
cognate  natural  laws. 


168  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

"Second.  That  we  clearly  and  emphatically  distinguish 
between  a  '  therapeutic  law'  and  the  laws  of  chemistry, 
physics,  and  hygiene ;  and  while  in  the  treatment  of 
disease  their  formula,  ' causa  sublata  tollitur  effectus,  is 
often  to  be  remembered  and  used  with  advantage,  yet 
such  laws  and  such  action  in  no  way  infringe  upon  or  in- 
validate the  therapeutic  law,  l  similia  similibus  curantur? 

"Third.  That  we  have  not  in  the  past,  nor  do  we 
now,  yield  one  tittle  of  our  rights,  as  physicians,  to  use 
any  means  or  appliances  of  the  general  profession  to  aid 
in  the  treatment  of  our  patients  (under  the  homoeo- 
pathic law),  or  in  the  palliation  of  their  suffering,  through 
the  application  of  any  physical,  surgical,  chemical,  or 
hygienic  law,  leaving  the  question  of  such  use  to  the 
individual  judgment  of  the  practitioner,  assured  that 
they  will  be  least  used  by  those  who  are  the  best 
acquainted  with  our  Materia  3fedica,  and  best  able  to 
wield  its  immense  armamentarium. 

"Fourth.  That,  contrary  to  the  opinion  held  by  some, 
we  most  thoroughly  indorse,  and  would  most  earnestly 
enforce,  the  study  of  pathology  and  pathological  ana- 
tomy in  our  schools  and  by  our  students,  as  determina- 
ting in  the  direction  of  a  broader  medical  culture. 

"Fifth.  That  the  great  work  of  our  school,  in  the 
advancing  of  medical  science,  is  the  proving  of  drugs, 
and  the  enlarging,  purifying  and  verifying  of  our  Ma- 
teria Medica. 

"We  point  with  just  pride  to  the  work  we  have 
already  accomplished  ;  and  though  we  may  lament  that 
it  has  not  been  more  thorough,  and  less  open  to  criticism, 
yet  we  hail  the  continued  appropriation  by  other  schools 
of  the  medicines,  and  methods  of  using  them,  that  we 
have  introduced  to  the  profession,  in  those  diseases  where 
their  usefulness  has  been  indicated  to  us  by  their  patho- 
genesis, as  a  virtual  indorsement  of  our  labors,  and  to  a 
certain  extent  vouching  for  their  substantial  accuracy. 

"  We  do  not  look  upon  this  action  on  the  part  of  our 
quondam  opponents  with  jealousy,  but  welcome  it  cor- 


POSITION  OF  THE  SCHOOL  IN  NEW  YORK.         169 

dially,  when  credited,  as  the  dawning  of  a  better  era. 
We  freely  yield  our  labors  for  the  use  of  others,  as  only 
a  just  contribution  to  the  general  profession  from  which 
we  have  received  so  much. 

"Sixth.  In  relation  to  the  dose  of  the  simillimum 
proper  to  be  exhibited,  we  discover  that  the  most  bril- 
liant triumphs  of  homoeopathy  have  been  achieved  by 
the  use  of  attenuated  medicines;  yet,  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
we  find  that  even  the  crude  drug  in  minute  doses  will 
exhibit  power  to  become  a  remedy  under  our  therapeutic 
law. 

"But,  as  we  as  yet  have  not  been  able  to  deduce  a  law 
to  guide  us  in  determining  the  amount  of  a  drug  to  be 
used,  or  the  attenuation  to  be  exhibited,  in  order  to 
meet  the  demands  of  any  case  most  accurately,  this 
society,  while  on  the  one  hand  it  refuses  to  join  with 
those  who  decry  attenuated  medicines,  on  the  other  will 
not  refuse  to  recognize  as  brethren  those  who,  governed 
by  their  honest  convictions,  can  only  exhibit  crude 
medicines  or  the  lowest  attenuation  in  the  treatment  of 
the  sick." 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  society  held  in  Albany, 

N.  Y.,  February  10th  and  11th,  1880,  this  committee 

made  the  following  Report : — 

"  The  committee  found  members  trammeled  by  doc- 
trine, rigidly  enforced,  which  they  did  not  believe  in. 
The  committee  have  endeavored  to  act  as  peacemakers, 
by  formulating  fundamental  principles  on  which  all  or 
at  least  a  large  majority  can  agree. 

"  The  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  report 
upon  the  '  State  of  Homoeopathy/  received  by  the 
society  at  its  last  annual  meeting,  would  respectfully 
report : — 

"That  in  accordance  with  the  resolutions  contained  in 
the  report,  the  members  of  the  committee  have  during 
the  year  conducted  an  extensive  correspondence  with  the 
profession  throughout  the  State. 


170  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

"  They  have  endeavored  to  obtain  from  those  who 
feel  aggrieved  a  statement  of  their  cause  of  complaint ; 
and  they  have  attempted  to  write  a  report  to  the 
society  which  shall  be  true  to  the  principles  of  Homoeo- 
pathy, and  yet  broad  enough  to  cover  the  real  issue 
which  seemed  to  demand  the  resolution  of  1878. 

"  Your  committee  has  found  a  general  and  most 
hearty  concurrence  of  belief  in  the  law,  similia  simili- 
bus  curantur, 

"  It  has  found  a  diversity  of  sentiment  concerning  the 
use  of  attenuated  medicines,  and  as  to  the  reliability  of 
provings  made  with  them. 

"  There  is  also  a  lack  of  harmony  prevailing  through- 
out the  profession,  as  to  the  expediency  of  putting  upon 
record  any  expression  concerning  the  use  of  extraneous 
appliances,  when  treating  a  patient  with  internal  medi- 
cation, administered  according  to  our  therapeutic  law. 

"It  is  very  generally  conceded,  however,  that  the 
mere  fact  of  being  a  homoeopathic  practitioner  has  de- 
barred no  one  from  the  right  to  use  such  appliances,  if, 
in  his  judgment,  they  are  demanded. 

"  Your  committee  wish  to  draw  careful  attention  to 
the  protest  of  those  engaged  in  the  passage  of  the  reso- 
lution of  1878. 

"  They  contend  that  their  position  has  been  misrepre- 
sented and  the  intent  of  their  resolution  most  unjustly 
judged. 

"  It  seems  to  your  committee  that  in  their  attempt  to 
place  themselves  in  a  proper  position  before  the  commu- 
nity, they  were  betrayed  into  expressions  that  appeared 
to  be  false  to  the  principles  they  had  so  long  professed, 
and  for  which  they  had  so  long  contended. 

"Your  committee  remembers  that  words  do  not 
always  convey  the  thought  intended,  and  they  cannot  do 
otherwise  than  exercise  the  utmost  charity  toward  the 
movers  of  the  resolution  of  1878,  and  to  express  their 
confidence  in  their  protestations.  We  deem  it  expedient, 
however,  to  calmly  and  decidedly  put  ourselves  upon 


POSITION  OF  THE  SCHOOL  IN  NEW  YORK.         171 

record  as  misrepresented  by  it,  and  we  wish  to  do  this 
in  plain  and  unmistakable  language. 

"Your  committee  therefore  suggests  that  the  reso- 
lutions which  they  herewith  present  be  adopted  as  a 
substitute  for  the  preamble  and  resolution  passed  by  this 
society  in  1878,  as  expressing  the  views  of  this  body  in 
regard  to  the  matter  under  consideration." 

The  resolutions  referred  to  in  the  preceding  para- 
graph are  the  same,  in  substance,  as  those  of  1879. 

"After  considerable  skirmishing  the  report  was  adopted 
by  a  vote  of  33  to  15. 

"  The  arguments  offered  by  the  opposers  of  the  reso- 
lutions consisted  of  negative  qualities  chiefly,  the  points 
mainly  advanced  being,  that  a  formal  declaration  of 
principles  was  unnecessary  and  even  harmful,  as  indica- 
tive of  a  want  of  confidence  in  the  universality  of 
application  of  the  homoeopathic  law.  While  they  were 
willing  to  use  any  and  all  other  measures  they  were  not 
disposed  to  make  public  acknowledgment  to  that  effect. 

"  The  argument  advanced  by  the  majority  was  chiefly 
embodied  in  the  remarks  by  Dr.  D.  He  stated  sub- 
stantially, that  there  was  nothing  objectionable  in  the 
report  or  in  the  resolutions.  They  were  the  result  of  an 
extended  correspondence  on  the  part  of  the  committee 
with  homoeopathic  physicians  throughout  the  State ;  they 
clearly  and  forcibly  express  the  sentiments  of  a  majority 
of  the  profession.  By  formally  adopting  them  the  con- 
troversy on  this  subject  will  quickly  terminate.  They 
leave  the  question  regarding  liberty  of  opinion  and 
action  where  it  ought  to  be  left,  viz.,  that  he  who 
believes  in  our  law  of  cure,  and  practices  according  to 
his  best  ability,  is  a  homoeopath ist.  He  had  followed 
this  plan  since  his  membership  in  the  society,  more  than 
twenty-five  years.  He  believed  the  homoeopathic  to  be 
the  best  therapeutic  system,  but  not  the  only  available 
and  useful  one.  He  held  it  to  be  his  duty  at  the  bedside 
of  the  patient  to  use  every  known  method  extant,  and 


172  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

that  he  would  do  in  spite  of  any  organization  under  the 
sun. 

"If  all  the  members  have  this  privilege,  as  is  most 
assuredly  the  case,  the  society  ought  to  sustain  them  in 
the  enjoyment  of  it.  A  church  having  a  code  of  morals 
that  its  members  could  violate  with  impunity  would  lose 
its  character  and  influence.  We  claim  the  right  to  prac- 
tice as  we  please,  and  some  present  say  the  society  should 
cover  the  breach.  Is  that  the  best  course  for  the  society 
to  pursue?  No,  let  the  society  rest  on  a  liberal,  sound 
and  generous  basis  before  the  world,  and  declare  that  it 
stands  behind  its  members  and  endorses  their  acts.  I 
would  not  give  a  fig  for  a  society  that  cannot  be  as  in- 
dependent and  manly  as  its  individual  members." 

Thus  it  will  be  seen,  by  the  proceedings  of  the  homoeo- 
pathic societies  of  these  great  States,  that  there  are  two 
parties  or  factions  in  that  school ;  one  of  which  not 
only  indorses  the  pure  homoeopathy  of  Hahnemann, 
but  carries  its  dilutions  and  attenuations  much  higher 
than  he  recommended.  The  other  faction  is  ready  to 
abandon  high  dilutions  altogether,  and  begins  to  question 
the  divinity  and  universality  of  this  great  law  of  " Simi- 
lia  similibus  curantur"  This  division  extends  through- 
out the  entire  ranks  of  homoeopathy,  and  will,  sooner 
or  later,  lead  to  an  open  rupture ;  in  fact,  steps  have 
already  been  taken  by  the  liberal  wing  to  establish  a 
school  or  college  in  Buffalo,  N.  Y. 

The  dogmatic  wing  of  the  school  has  designated  the 
other  party  as  Eclectic  homceopathists. 

Dr.  Lewis  Sherman,  of  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin,  made 
a  proposition  to  the  Academy  of  Medicine  (homceo- 


A   TEST   PROPOSED.  173 

pathic)  to  test  the  medical  qualities,  or  more  properly 
the  efficacy  of  the  thirtieth   potency ;    from  which  we 
quote  : — 
"A  TEST  OF  THE  EFFICACY  OF  THE  HIGH  DILUTIONS. 

By  LEWIS  SHERMAN,  m.d.,  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin. 

"  I  propose  a  scientific  test  of  the  pathogenetic  and 
therapeutic  action  of  the  thirtieth  Hahnemannian  dilu- 
tion. The  object  of  this  test  is  to  determine  whether 
or  not  this  preparation  can  produce  any  medicinal  action 
on  the  human  organism  in  health  or  disease. 

"A  vial  of  pure  sugar  pellets,  moistened  with  the 
thirtieth  Hahnemannian  dilution  of  Aconite,  and  nine 
similar  vials,  moistened  with  pure  alcohol,  so  as  to  make 
them  resemble  the  test  pellets,  shall  be  given  to  the 
prover.  The  vials  are  to  be  numbered  1,  2,  3,  4,  5,  6, 
7,  8,  9,  and  10.  The  number  given  to  the  Aconite  vial 
shall  be  unknown  to  the  prover,  and  it  shall  be  his  task 
to  determine  which  of  the  ten  vials  contains  Aconite. 

"  These  preparations  are  to  be  put  up  with  the  great- 
est care,  in  the  presence  of  the  members  of  the  Milwau- 
kee Academy  of  Medicine,  and  then  placed  in  the  hands 
of  an  unprejudiced  layman  of  unimpeachable  honor, 
who  shall  number  and  dispense  the  vials  as  they  are 
called  for  by  the  pro  vers. 

"  The  provers  must  be  physicians  of  acknowledged 
ability,  who  possess  a  good  knowledge  of  the  recorded 
symptomatology  of  Aconite,  and  who  have  faith  in  the 
efficacy  of  the  thirtieth  dilution. 

"  If  a  hundred  physicians  engage  in  making  the  test, 
and  all  or  nearly  all  single  out  the  Aconite  pellets,  the 
inference  will  be  that  the  thirtieth  dilution  represents 
the  medicinal  properties  of  Aconite. 

"If  only  about  ten  of  the  hundred  succeed  in  the 
trial,  the  inference  will  be  that  the  thirtieth  dilution  of 
Aconite  possesses  no  medicinal  properties,  for  according 
to  the  laws  of  probabilities  about  one  in  ten  would  guess 
right  without  making  any  trial. 


174  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

"  The  experimenters  must  be  physicians  of  acknowl- 
edged ability,  who  possess  a  good  knowledge  of  the 
therapeutic  indications  of  the  remedies  tried,  and  who 
profess  faith  in  the  efficacy  of  the  thirtieth  dilution.  If 
in  this  trial  there  be  about  one  hundred  per  cent,  of  suc- 
cesses, the  inference  will  be  that  the  thirtieth  dilutions 
have  curative  powers.  If  there  be  only  about  fifty  per 
cent,  of  successes,  the  inference  will  be  that  the  thirtieth 
dilutions  have  no  curative  powers. 

"  If  those  who  advocate  the  use  of  these  preparations 
refuse  to  participate  in  the  experiment,  the  profession 
will  have  reason  to  suspect  that  they  are  insincere. 

"  If  the  result  of  the  test  should  be  to  prove  that  the 
thirtieth  dilution  of  a  drug  can  make  the  sick  well  or 
the  well  sick,  then  it  must  be  acknowledged  that  in  this 
a  great  discovery  has  been  made  in  physics,  as  well  as 
in  medicine,  and  the  science  and  ingenuity  of  the  civil- 
ized world  will  be  set  at  work  to  find  out  the  useful 
applications  of  the  discovery. 

"  If  the  result  should  be  to  prove  that  the  thirtieth 
dilution  has  no  such  powers  as  it  is  claimed  to  have, 
then  the  medical  profession  has  a  right  to  demand  that 
the  symptoms  supposed  to  have  been  produced  by  the 
thirtieth  and  higher  dilutions  be  expunged  from  our 
Materia  Medica,  and  that  advocates  of  the  potentization 
theory  shall  henceforth  cease  to  prate  their  '  cures '  in 
medical  journals  and  before  medical  societies  which  are 
avowedly  devoted  to  the  interests  of  science." 

This  proposition  was  accepted  by  the  academy  and 

the  medicines  were  prepared  and  placed  in  the  hands  of 

a  minister  for  the  purpose  of  distribution  among  the 

provers,  and  perhaps  in  a  short  time  we  will  have  the 

published  results.*     This  proposition  has  been  severely 

criticised  in  the  medical  journals  of  the  homoeopathic 

*The  following  extracts  from  the  final  report  of  the  Committee 
on  Sherman's  test  of  the  Thirtieth  Dilution  is  hereby  appended. 


THE   MILWAUKEE  TEST.  175 

school,  many  of  the  high  dilutionists  seeming  to  fear 
the  result. 

In  a  paper  presented  to  the  State  Homoeopathic  Medical 
Society,  of  Tennessee,  and  published  in  the  American 
Homcdopathist,  March  1878,  the  writer  discusses  the 
subject  of  internal  and  avoidable  obstacles  to  homceo- 

Unfortunately  for  the  high  dilutionists,  none  of  the  provers  suc- 
ceeded in  finding  the  medicated  pellets. 

"  FINAL  REPORT  ON  THE  MILWAUKEE  TEST  OF  THE  THIR- 
TIETH DILUTION. 

"  The  Milwaukee  Academy  of  Medicine,  in  completing  the 
Pathogenetic  and  Therapeutic  Test  of  the  Thirtieth  Hahne- 
mannian  Dilution,  makes  the  following  report : — 

"  That  the  unavoidable  delay  in  making  the  report  was  due  to 
the  removal  of  the  depositary,  Rev.  G.  T.  Ladd,  from  this  city  to 
Brunswick,  Maine  ;  to  his  absence  from  home,  caused  by  the  ill- 
ness and  death  of  his  father ;  and  to  the  tardiness  of  the  reports 
from  the  experimenters. 

"That  in  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  the  test  we  have 
adhered  strictly  to  the  details  of  the  plan  for  a  scientific  test  of 
the  pathogenetic  and  therapeutic  action  of  the  thirtieth  Hahne- 
mannian  dilution,  full  particulars  of  which  were  published  in  the 
circular  issued  by  this  society  in  December,  1878. 

11  We  would  report — 

"  That  the  medicines  used  in  making  the  dilutions  for  the 
therapeutic  test  were  obtained  from  the  pharmacy  of  Messrs. 
Boericke  &  Tafel,  and  the  aconite  tincture  was  tested  by  several 
members  of  this  society  and  found  to  produce  its  pathogenetic 
effects. 

"That  the  dilutions  were  made  by  this  society,  in  accordance 
with  the  Hahnemannian  directions  for  the  preparation  of  the 
thirtieth. 

11  That  at  a  regular  meeting  of  the  society,  held  April  1,  1879, 
the  following  resolution  was  unanimously  adopted  : — 

"  Upon  application  by  any  Professor  in  a  Medical  College,  or  any  other 
public  advocate  of  the  High  Potencies,  the  Academy  will  prepare  and 
furnish  the  Thirtieth  Hahnemannian  Dilution  of  any  remedy  in  common 
use,  for  the  purpose,  and  in  accordance  with  the  terms,  heretofore  pub- 
lished in  the  pamphlet  entitled  '  A  Test  of  the  Thirtieth  Dilution.' 

"That  in  accordance  with  various  requests  of  the  provers  we 
have  prepared,  in  addition  to  the  dilutions  mentioned  in  the  pam- 
phlet, pathogenetic  tests  of  mix  vomica,  belladonna,  and  arsenicum 
album,  and  therapeutic  tests  of  sulphur  and  digitalis. 

"That  the  bottles  containing  the  thirtieth  dilution,  thus  pre- 
pared, together  with  a  bottle  of  the  alcohol  used  in  their  prepara- 


176  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

pathy,  under  the  heads  of,  1st.  Materia  Medica;  2d. 
Potencies;  3d.  Pathology;  We  shall  quote  a  portion 
of  the  article  : — 

"materia  medica. 

"  The  voluminous  and  unreliable  materia  medica  forms 
a  terrible  stumbling  block  to  the  student  of  homoeopathy. 

tion,  were  given  directly  into  the  custody  of  the  depositary.  That 
he  was  also  supplied  with  pure  sugar  pellets,  vials  and  mailing 
boxes,  and  that  he  was  requested  to  medicate  the  pellets,  and 
dispense  them  according  to  orders  which  he  might  receive  from 
the  secretary. 

"  That  the  application  for  the  test  cases  were  given  directly  to 
the  depositary  as  soon  after  their  receipt  as  possible  ;  that  all 
cases  given  out  were  sent  by  him  in  response  to  application 
received  by  this  society  from  the  provers ;  and  that,  in  answer  to 
our  request  we  received  from  him  a  thoroughly  sealed  envelope, 
containing  the  subjoined  report :  — 

"  Bowdoin  College,  Brunswick,  Me.,  Jan.  26,  1880. 

u  To  the  Milwaukee  Academy  of  Medicine. — Gentlemen:  The 
report  which  is  herewith  submitted  to  you,  I  beg  leave  to  preface 
with  the  following  statements  : — 

"The  work  which  you  did  me  the  honor  to  entrust  to  me  has 
been  most  carefully  and  scrupulously  done ;  the  record  has  been 
accurately  kept,  and  secluded  from  all  eyes  but  my  own. 

"Great  pains  has  (have?)  been  taken  to  exclude  entirely  the 
possibility  of  guessing  the  medicated  vials,  instead  of  discovering 
them  by  scientific  experiment. 

"  Nothing  has  been  permitted  to  indicate  a  difference  in  the  vials 
tested,  or  to  make  it  possible  for  any  experimenter  to  detect  in  any 
way  the  reasons  for  choosing  one  number,  rather  than  another, 
of  all  the  vials  numbered,  to  contain  the  medicated  pellets. 

"  So  far  as  the  test  has  been  made,  it  has  been  made  under  the 
fairest  conditions  possible  for  me  to  secure. 

"  With  these  remarks,  I  invite  your  attention  to  the  appended 
itemized  statement  of  the  tests  sent,  the  time  of  sending,  the 
person  to  whom  sent,  and  the  numbers  in  each  test  of  the  medi- 
cated vials. 

"These,  gentlemen,  are  all  the  vials  sent  out  by  me  in  accord- 
ance with  the  instructions  received  from  your  committee. 
"I  am  very  respectfully  yours, 

"  George  T.  Ladd." 

"  In  the  tabular  statement,  the  number  of  the  medicated  vial 
in  the  cases  not  tested,  or  not  reported,  has  been  withheld  by 
the   society,  for  obvious  reasons.     The  last  column,   giving  the 


THE  MILWAUKEE  TEST. 


177 


It  seems  as  though  the  idea  was  to  get  as  many  symptoms 
as  possible  for  each  drug — regardless  as  to  whether  they 
are  veritable  drug-symptoms,  or  personal  symptoms  pe- 
culiar to  the  prover,  or  symptoms  arising  from  other 
causes — and  to  search  for  medicines  among  all  kinds  of 
matter,  sometimes  too  foul  to  mention,  while  there  are 

report  of  the  experimenter,  has  been  added,  to  make  the  report 
complete." 


1— 

c 

X 
c8 

as 

"5  ** 

£ 

c 

o    a 

s 

p 

o 
6 

Name  of 
Experimenter. 

Residence  of 
Experimenter. 

Test 

EH 

O 

6 
1 

O    U 

s  a 

«     a, 

X 

Jan. 

13 

1 

Dr.  J.  Thompson- 

Greenfield,  Mass... 

Path. 

No  Report. 

" 

«i  i  2 

Prof.  C.  B.  Gatchell 

Ann  Arbor,  Mich- 

Ther. 

5 

Feb. 

26 1  3 

Dr.  H.  L.  Waldo.... 

West  Troy,  N.Y...-. 

Path. 

1 

ii 

« 

"    4 

Dr.  W.  8.  Gillett ... 

Ther. 

5 

ii 

U 

"    5 

Dr.  E.  Lippincott... 

Bowling  Green,  Ky 

Path. 

1 

ii 

Mar. 

lj   6 

Dr.  W.  H.  Blakely.. 

ii             ii          ii 

ii 

1 

10 

Number  6. 

" 

3l!  7 

Dr.  W.  B.  Trites  ... 

Manayunk,  Pa 

it 

1 

No  Report. 

ft 

",   8 

Dr.  G.  R.  Mitchell.. 

Richland  C,  Wis... 

ii 

1 

2 

Number  4. 

ii 

"     9 

Dr.  C.  R.  Muzzey... 

Watertown,  Wis... 

ii 

1 

7 

Number  1. 

" 

"  10 
"11 

Prof.  A.  Woodward 
Dr.  J.  H.  Thompson 

ii 
it 

1 
1 

1 

Number  2. 

ii 

New  York,  N.Y 

No  Symptoms 

a 

"12 

Dr.  N.  S.  Pennoyer 

ii 

1 

10 

Number  4. 

June  11 

ii     u    ii        u 

i<          ii 

Ther* 

1 

No  Report. 

Mar. 

5  16 

Dr.  C.H.Hall 

Putb. 

2 

ii 

May 

Dr.  M.  A.  Reis 

Milwaukee,  Wis... 

it     i 

1 

2 

Number  10. 

14 

«i  17 

Dr.  0.  W.  Smith.... 

Union  Sp'gs,  N.  Y.. 

"     ! 

i   1 

No  Report. 

"  18 

ii     u   ii        ii 

ii            ti 

Ther. 

5 

ii 

II 

"  19 

Prof.  Uhlemeyer.... 

Path. 

1 

3 

Number  5. 

II 

"  20 

ii             it 

a             ii 

Ther. 

5 

1 

Arsenicum  1. 

II 

"  21 

Dr.  W.  F.  Morgan.. 

Leavenworth,  Kan 

Path. 

1 

No  Symptoms 

II 

"  22 

u      a      it            u 

ii                 « 

Ther.l 

5 

No  Report. 

II 

"  23 

Dr.  0.  S.  Childs 

Beaver  Dam,  Wis.... 

41         I 

5 

" 

June 

18  24 

Path.! 

1 

it 

",25 

it            ii 

ii             ii 

Ther. 

|  5 

ii 

i< 

ii 

26 

IDr.  Wm.  Eggert.... 

Indianapolis,  Ind.. 

Path 

1 

ii 

it 

27 

,27 

Dr.  Petrus  Nelson.. 

Minneapolis,  Min.. 

Ther. 

5 

July 
it 

28  30 

Dr.  H.  A  Foster  ... 

Buffalo    N.Y 

.1     ' 

i   ? 

ii 

Dr.  T.L.Brown 

Bingbamton,  N.Y.. 

ii     1 

1 

i< 

ii 

"  31 
"  32 

Dr.  E.  C  Morrill... 
Dr.  CW.  Mohr 

ii 

1 

1 

1 

u 

it 

Philadelphia,  Pa... 

II 

ii 

ii  33) 
34  J 

Dr.  W.M.Butler... 

Middletown,  N.Y.. 

Ther. 

2 

j 

11 

ii 

35) 

39) 
"  40 

Dr.  L.  A.  Campbell.  Attleboro,  Mass 

it 

5 

II 

« 

Dr.  J.  A.  Pearsall...  Saratoga  Sp'gs^.Y 

Path. 

1 

II 

u 

•i  41 

1 

" 

*  Five  vials,  one  containing  Arson.  30. 
12 


178  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

plenty  of  well-known  and  '  respectable'  drugs,  which,  if 
properly  proved,  would  furnish  all  that  is  required  for 
the  removal  of  disease.  The  consequence  is  a  materia 
medica  of  many  volumes  and  almost  useless  in  a  practi- 
cal point  of  view." 

"  POTENCIES. 

"  The  question  of  '  potencies'  seems  to  have  aroused  a 
spirit  of  contention  in  the  homoeopathic  fraternity, 
almost  as  bitter  as  any  between  the  old  school  and  the 
new.  These  dissensions  surprised  me  as  they  have  many 
others  who  have  turned  their  attention  toward  homoeo- 
pathy expecting  to  find  the  most  perfect  harmony.  Why 
this  feeling  should  exist  I  cannot  see,  for  homoeopathy 
does  not  mean  small  doses,  nor  high  nor  low  'potencies.' 
These  should  be  left  to  the  judgment  of  the  practitioner; 
all  who  practice  under  the  law  of  similars  being  homoeo- 
paths. The  question  of  dose  or  quantity  is  not  con- 
sidered a  cause  for  contention  among  the  allopaths,  each 
physician  being  considered  capable  of  using  his  own 
judgment  in  such  matters. 

"  The  heat  of  this  combat  seems  to  be  greatest  among 
'  high  potency'  men,  they  setting  themselves  up  as  the 
only  true  homoeopaths  or  followers  of  Hahnemann. 

"RECAPITULATION. 

TEN-VIAL,   OR   PATHOGENETIC   TE8T. 

Number  of  Tests  applied  for  and  sent  out 25 

Number  of  tests  on  which  reports  have  been  received 9 

Number  of  tests  in  which  the  medicated  vial  was  found 0 

TWO-VIAL,   OR   THERAPEUTIC    TEST. 

Number  of  tests  applied  for  and  sent  out 47 

Number  of  tests  on  which  reports  have  been  received 1 

Number  of  tests  in  which  the  medicated  vial  was  found 1 

FIVE-VIAL   TEST   OF   DR.   PENNOYER. 

Number  of  tests  applied  for  and  sent  out 1 

Number  of  tests  on  which  reports  have  been  received 0 

Number  of  tests  in  which  the  medicated  vial  was  found 0 

"  By  order  of  the  Milwaukee  Academy  of  Medicine. 

"  Sam'l  Potter,  m.d.,  Prest. 
"Eugene  F.  Storke,  m.d.,  Serfy. 
" Milwaukee,  Wis.,  Feb.  16th,  1880." 


OBSTACLES   TO   HOMOEOPATH Y.  179 

"  T  notice  frequently,  in  articles  by  some  of  the  advo- 
cates of  'high  potencies/  the  terra  ' pure  homoeopathy' 
applied  to  their  system  of  potentizing  remedies." 

"  There  can  be  no  such  thing  as  i  pure'  nor  '  spurious' 
homoeopathy;  it  is  well  denned  in  three  words — 'similia 
similibus  curantur' — and  all  who  accept  this  and  follow 
it  are  homoeopaths,  and  none  others,  however  high  their 
1  potencies'  may  be  and  however  close  their  adherence  to 
the  t  single  remedy." 

"  The  homoeopath  must  employ  the  similar  remedy ; 
and  in  order  to  do  this  successfully  he  must  first  know, 
from  thorough  and  careful  provings,  and  not  from  some- 
body's imagination,  what  his  several  remedies  are  found 
to  do  in  the  healthy  human  body ;  second,  he  must  give 
his  remedy  in  such  form  and  quantity  as  to  make  the 
impression  required  ;  third,  he  must  repeat  his  dose  and 
regulate  the  circumstances  of  his  patient  as  each  case 
may  demand." 

"pathology. 

"  A  great  obstacle  to  the  advancement  of  homoeopathy 
is  the  position  taken  and  articles  published  by  some  of 
its  would-be  leaders  against  pathology.  It  cannot  be 
possible  that  they  wish  to  lower  the  standard  of  educa- 
tion among  homoeopaths.  If  they  do  their  downfall  is 
certain. 

"  If  they  drop  pathology,  why  not  drop  anatomy  and 
physiology  and  chemistry  from  the  list?  Why  not, 
indeed,  drop  every  branch  from  their  catalogue  which  is 
taught  in  the  allopathic  colleges  ? 

"They  say  that  Hahnemann  wTas  opposed  to  pathology, 
but  I  think  he  only  cautioned  against  it  as  used  by  the 
old  school  instead  of  symptomatology  in  the  administra- 
tion of  medicines.  They  say  that  pathology  is  material- 
istic. In  this  I  agree  with  them  fully.  What  are  they 
dealing  writh  but  matte'- f  There  is  nothing  very 
spiritual  in  a  case  of  cholera  morbus  or  delirium  tremens; 
such  an  argument  is  too  ridiculous  to  answer.  To  the 
bodily  and  not  the  spiritual  ills  we  minister. 


180  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

From  an  article  contributed  to  the  Homoeopathic  Times 
for  January,  1878,  one  of  the  leading  journals  of  that 
school,  I  will  quote  the  following  paragraphs : — 

"In  my  judgment,  we  have  sufficient  evidence  to 
warrant  us  in  the  belief  that  many  diseases  are  removed 
when  drugs  are  administered  which,  if  taken  by  a  per- 
son in  health  would  produce  certain  morbid  conditions 
resembling  the  existing  disease ;  I  say  morbid  conditions 
in  contradistinction  to  the  host  of  symptoms  gathered 
from  the  patient,  which  are  as  likely  to  be  imaginary  as 
real,  and  result  as  much  from  fancy  as  from  medicine, 
for  we  all  know  that  no  two  persons  will  give  us  the 
same  account  of  their  sensations  and  sufferings,  even 
though  they  may  be  the  subjects  of  the  same  identical 
disease  in  every  particular,  so  far  as  we  can  determine ; 
any  system  of  medication  that  proposes  to  use  drugs 
which  in  their  minute  details  resemble  the  endless 
phases  of  diseased  action,  lays  down  a  proposition  utterly 
repugnant  to  common  sense,  for  the  finite  is  expected  to 
meet  a  demand  only  comprehended  by  the  infinite,  and 
any  man  who  would  be  ready  to  avow  that  he  under- 
stands the  complications  of  disease  and  can  interpret  its 
mysterious  development,  so  that  he  could  apply  the  most 
attenuated  atom  to  a  remote  organ  passing  through  the 
complicated  mechanism  of  the  human  body,  which  in 
itself  is  the  epitome  of  the  universe,  would  be  declared 
by  all  men  of  thought  either  a  knave  or  a  fool.  Homoe- 
opathy, as  I  understand  it,  is  a  system  of  medicine  and 
not  magic,  and  it  has  already  done  much,  and  is  destined 
to  accomplish  still  more,  for  mankind ;  it  is  yet  in  its 
infancy;  and  inasmuch  as  medicine  is  the  result  of  ex- 
perience, it  is  an  unreasonable  adventure  for  so  young  a 
child  to  push  aside  the  accumulated  proofs  of  past  ages, 
for  the  trials  of  a  day.  Homoeopathy  has  done  a  good 
work,  and  has  wrought  important  changes  in  the  healing 
art,  and  is  entitled  to  unmeasured  praise ;  for,  in  my 
opinion,  it  has  played  an  important  part  in  revolutioniz- 


KEY-NOTE   FOLLY.  181 

ing,  to  a  very  considerable  degree,  the  therapeutics  of 
medicine,  and  has  demonstrated  to  the  profession  the  fact 
that  the  curative  effects  of  a  drug  can  be  obtained  by 
doses  so  small  as  not  to  impair  health  or  endanger  life ; 
this  fact  has  been  established  by  those  who  have  used 
the  low  attenuations  containing  drugs  in  appreciable 
doses  ;  and  those  who  have  adhered  to  the  high  dilutions 
are  entitled  to  some  credit,  for  they  have  demonstrated 
that  the  doctrine  of  the  fathers  was  correct,  and  that  a 
large  proportion  of  the  sick  would  recover  without  any 
medication  ;  in  other  words,  would  get  well  if  not  inter- 
fered with. 

"Homoeopathy  has  merit  as  a  principle,  and  deserves 
study,  but  its  materia  medica  is  in  many  respects  only 
entitled  to  the  condemnation  of  scholars  and  philo- 
sophers. For  example,  the  voluminous  compilation  of 
Professor  Allen,  which  must  have  been  made  by  ma- 
chinery, is  entirely  impracticable,  and  calculated  to  mis- 
lead the  unwary.  For  every  one  knows  that  if  all  the 
homoeopathic  physicians  on  earth  could  have  lived  and 
commenced  experimenting  upon  the  morning  of  creation 
and  continued  actively  at  work  to  this  moment,  they 
could  not  have  proven  one-half  of  the  symptoms  attri- 
buted to  the  various  drugs  therein  contained. 

"  We  often  hear  men  who  have  only  had  a  limited 
experience  speak  of  the  wonderful,  exact,  marvelous  and 
minute  effects  of  drugs,  with  the  greatest  apparent  con- 
fidence and  flippancy.  They  tell  us  about  certain  fingers, 
or  even  portions  of  them,  being  affected  by  a  certain 
remedy,  at  certain  times,  and  at  stated  periods,  after  doing 
certain  things,  or  they  refer  to  a  certain  freak,  whim, 
caprice,  or  fancy,  that  went  flitting  through  the  brain, 
and,  infatuated  with  the  idea  that  they  have  found  a 
"key-note,"  they  set  the  spiritualized  atom  at  work  to 
search  out  and  remedy  the  existing  malady,  which  it 
does  to  the  gratification  and  astonishment  of  all  except 
the  doctor  who  despatched  the  pellet  upon  its  glorious 
mission,  because  he  was  familiar  with  its  most  subtle 
and  hidden  power,  and  had  plunged  into  the  deep  mys- 


182  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

teries  of  creative  wisdom.  With  such  foolish  jargon  the 
profession  is  loaded  down,  and  its  burdens  must  be 
removed,  or  it  will  eventually  be  buried  so  deep  beneath 
the  popular  judgment  as  to  defy  all  possibility  of  resur- 
rection, and  whatever  good  it  has  accomplished  will  be 
lost  forever. 

"  To  prove  a  drug,  as  is  claimed  by  the  new  school, 
upon  the  healthy  organism,  and  demonstrate  its  exact 
nature  and  action,  implies  much  more  labor,  and  the 
whole  thing  is  involved  in  far  greater  uncertainty  than 
many  suppose. 

"  The  evidence  we  have  upon  this  point  is  so  diffusive, 
profuse  and  contradictory,  that  the  whole  system  of  drug 
proving  is  not  only  doubted  by  many,  but  is  to-day, 
with  all  the  boasting  of  learned  authors  and  unlearned 
doctors,  a  mooted  question  in  the  scientific  world  and 
still  remains  to  be  demonstrated. 

"  Some  excellent  witnesses  swear  to  altogether  too 
much,  and  thus  damage  their  testimony.  Our  thera- 
peutics has  demanded  as  its  due  too  much,  and,  in  fact, 
more  than  men  or  angels  can  contribute  or  comprehend. 

"  Let  us  look  for  a  moment  at  the  difficulties  which 
stand  in  the  w^ay  of  obtaining  the  effects  of  drugs,  as 
claimed  by  the  homoeopathic  school,  and  when  we  have 
finished  the  task  I  am  sure  that  we  will  be  satisfied  if 
we  can  obtain  some  general  idea  of  medicine,  and  will  be 
ready  to  set  aside  the  nonsense  of  "  key-notes/'  special 
indications,"  "  peculiar  sensations,"  and  act  upon  facts 
that  cannot  be  disputed. 

"  To  give  one  or  more  persons  a  drug,  and  register  all 
their  peculiar  fancies  and  ideas,  does  not  furnish  any 
reliable  evidence  of  the  real  effects  of  the  drug,  evidence 
upon  which  a  man  is  warranted  to  act  who  holds  in  his 
hands  the  responsibility  of  human  life. 

"  If  the  system  of  proving  drugs  is  true,  it  is  too  plain 
for  comment  or  controversy  that  in  order  to  arrive  at 
correct  conclusions  the  drug  must  be  tested  upon  persons 
having  in  all  respects  the  same  physical  and  mental 
qualities ;  and  even  then  the  proceeding  is  attended  with 


FALLACY  OF   DRUG-PRO  VINGS.  183 

doubt  and  difficulty,  because  the  same  agent  does  not 
always  produce  the  same  effect  upon  the  same  person, 
for  reasons  entirely  unknown  to  the  most  learned  among 
men  ;  for  example,  one  may  take  a  narcotic,  to  ascertain 
its  medicinal  effects,  and  every  time  he  repeats  the  ex- 
periment a  new  train  of  symptoms  may  be  developed, 
and  in  this  way  the  experimenter  may  be  led  into  fatal 
error ;  then  again,  no  two  persons  can  be  found  so  exactly 
alike  that  they  can  afford  us  proper  evidence  concerning 
the  minute  effects  of  a  drug ;  then,  too,  we  all  know 
that  the  same  drug,  in  the  same  quantity,  will  produce 
entirely  different  effects  upon  different  individuals;  nor 
does  the  difficulty  end  here,  for  the  smell  of  a  rose  will 
develop  disease  in  some  cases,  while  most  persons  delight 
in  the  delicious  odors.  When  we  claim  that  we  are 
familiar  with  the  ultimate  and  particular  action  of  drugs, 
we  only  assert  that  which  is  impossible  and  untrue,  and 
entitles  us  to  a  place  in  the  front  ranks  among  the 
mountebanks  who  impose  upon  the  credulity  of  man- 
kind. 

"While  I  am  willing  to  admit  that  experiments  upon 
the  healthy  have  been  productive  of  much  good,  I  am 
not  ready  to  deny  the  fact  that  the  whole  weight  of 
testimony  is  still  in  favor  of  those  who  have  arrived  at 
conclusions  by  repeated  trials  upon  the  sick,  and  I  would 
urge  that  both,  and  all  means  of  knowledge  be  embraced 
to  aid  men  engaged  in  the  healing  art,  for  all  bear  evi- 
dence of  thought,  and  are  freighted  with  the  invaluable 
testimony  of  experience. 

"  Homoeopathy  is  a  system  of  therapeutics,  and  here,  as 
in  other  schools,  the  physician  is  expected  to  select  his 
drug  and  determine  its  quality,  according  to  the  neces- 
sities of  the  case  before  him  ;  the  heresy  of  high  attenu- 
ations should  have  no  place  in  our  creed,  nor  home  in 
our  school,  if  we  desire  to  advance  and  expand  our  in- 
fluence, and  secure  for  it  public  regard  and  confidence, 
because  it  cannot  be  demonstrated  by  any  known  method 
that  either  medicinal  power  or  presence  exists  in  the 
exalted  attenuations,  any  more  than  it  can   be  shosvn 


184  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

that  intelligent  beings  descend  to  the  earth  in  rain- 
drops. 

"  Homoeopathy  being  a  system  of  rational  therapeutics, 
based  upon  possible  conclusions,  can  take  no  part  in  the 
false  and  foolish  doctrine  of  the  potentization  of  drugs ; 
this  delusion  belongs  exclusively  to  the  province  of  the 
magician,  who  can  produce  the  most  astounding  changes 
in  material  things  by  the  mention  of  peculiar  words  or 
the  direction  of  his  mysterious  wand. 

"  The  idea  that  a  given  substance  can  be  indefinitely 
diluted  and  its  power  indefinitely  increased  by  agitation, 
would  have  astonished  the  inhabitants  of  earth  in  the 
darkest  and  most  superstitious  ages  of  ancient  Egypt. 

"  The  men  who  can  believe  such  an  incredible  wonder 
should  not  deride  those  who  exposed  the  sick  in  public 
places,  or  treated  disease  by  amulets,  incantations,  or 
charms;  nor  should  they  point  the  finger  of  scorn  at  the 
good  old  men  who  rubbed  black  cats  over  the  stomachs 
of  those  who  were  tormented  with  the  colic. 

"  If  medicine  becomes  more  active  and  efficient  by 
diluting  and  shaking  it,  the  same  rule  should  apply  to 
food,  which  under  similar  circumstances  should  become 
more  nutritious.  The  principle  has  been  tested  upon 
milk  and  found  to  be  a  failure,  and  it  is  now  an  undis- 
puted fact  that  milk  cannot  be  improved  by  dilution  and 
shaking. 

"  When  human  wants  can  be  met  by  such  a  system  of 
magic,  when  wine  can  be  changed  to  the  absolute  blood 
of  Calvary's  victim,  when  bread  can  be  transformed  into 
the  real  body  of  Him  who  hung  upon  the  cross,  when 
the  philosopher's  stone  shall  have  been  found,  when  the 
laws  of  gravitation  shall  have  been  superseded  by  Yan- 
kee invention  and  genius,  when  the  transmutation  of 
metals  can  be  effected,  when  the  finite  can  grasp  the 
infinite,  when  flourish  has  more  potency  than  logic, 
when  brass  takes  the  place  of  brains,  when  man  shall 
have  achieved  the  creative  ability  of  a  God,  then,  and 
not  till  then,  can  he,  by  either  magic  or  muscle,  impart 
active  life  to  inert  substances ;  then,  and  not  till  then, 


HIGH  AND  LOW  DILUTIONISTS.  185 

can  he  diffuse  power  throughout  inanimate  nature;  then, 
and  not  till  then,  will  the  logic  of  the  world  allow 
spiritualized  drugs  a  place  in  medical  science." 

These  numerous  quotations  are  certainly  sufficient  to 
prove  that  the  homoeopathic  family  is  not  a  happy  and 
harmonious  one,  as  it,  with  certain  fixed  dogmatic  princi- 
ples, should  be.  It  contains  a  sufficient  quantity  of 
disturbing  elements  to  insure  its  speedy  destruction. 

Is  homoeopathic  practice  at  the  bedside  based  upon 
the  principles  which  they  teach,  and  do  the  practitioners 
of  this  school  prescribe  these  attenuations?  Some  of 
them  do.  One  wing  of  the  school,  the  high  dilutionists, 
prescribe  the  thirtieth*  the  one  hundredth,  the  two  hun- 
dredth, the  three  hundredth  and  the  one  thousandth 
potencies. 

The  low  dilutionists  not  only  prescribe  the  lower  po- 
tencies, but  crude  drugs,  in  as  large  doses  as  the  so-called 
allopathists.  They  also  use  strong  local  applications,  in 
direct  opposition  to  the  teachings  of  Hahnemann.  A 
few  references  taken  at  random  from  homoeopathic  jour- 
nals, will  be  sufficient  proof  of  this. 

A  writer  in  the  Medical  Investigator,  June  1st,  1879, 
(page  464)  recommends  the  use  of  a  strong  solution  of 
chloride  of  zinc  locally,  also  the  dry  chloride  of  zinc,  in 
the  treatment  of  alveolar  abscess.  The  same  writer 
recommends,  in  the  same  article,  the  use  of  tincture  of 
aconite  rad.  locally.  On  the  same  page  of  the  same 
journal  an  item  is  inserted,  copied  from  the  Medical 
Advance,  in  which  the  writer  prescribes  the  tincture  of 


186  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

iodine,  in  four-drop  doses  each  hour,  equal  to  ninety- 
six  drops  per  day;  more  than  three  times  as  much  as  an 
allopath  would  administer  in  the  same  length  of  time. 
A  writer  in  the  same  journal  for  February  1st,  1879, 
prescribed  a  wineglassful  of  a  decoction  of  eupatorium 
perforatum,  four  times  a  day. 

In  the  St.  Louis  Clinical  Review,  June  15th,  1879, 
(page  128)  five-grain  doses  of  bromate  of  lithia,  three 
times  per  day,  are  recommended.  In  the  same  journal 
(page  130)  chloral  hydrate,  seventy-five  grains  to  the 
ounce,  is  recommended  to  be  used  locally. 

At  the  Cincinnati  meeting  of  the  Western  Academy 
of  Homoeopathy,  May,  1878,  hydrastis  canadensis  and 
potassa  fusa  were  recommended  locally,  and  five-drop 
doses  of  tincture  of  phytolacca  three  times  per  day, 
by  the  author  of  a  paper  read  upon  that  occasion. 

In  the  Cincinnati  Medical  A dvance,  September,  1878, 
(page  248)  a  contributor  recommends  the  use  of  fifteen 
grains  of  quinia  for  the  cure  of  intermittents,  with 
which  he  claims  to  have  been  successful  after  failing  in 
many  cases  with  attenuated  remedies.  In  the  same 
article  he  alludes  to  a  homoeopathic  practitioner  who 
reports  a  large  number  of  cures  with  high  potencies, 
but  says  that  "  The  glory  of  his  achievement  was  somewhat 
dimmed  when  it  became  known  that  he  used  at  the  same 
time  a  tonic  which  contained  large  quantities  of  qui- 
nia 1 1 !  " 

An  article  was  published  in  the   Cincinnati  Medical 


PRACTICE   BY   HOMCEOPATHISTS.  187 

Advance  for  September,  1878,  on  the  subject  of  malig~ 
nant  diphtheria,  in  which  the  writer  claims  that  this 
disease  is  identical  with  scarlatina.  He  says :  "  Malig- 
nant diphtheria  becomes  merely  a  severe  scarlatina  under 

the  action  of  potassa  chlorate The 

dose  being  relative  and  not  absolute The 

quantity  should  be  increased  to  the  point  of  producing 
the  eruption.  Give  the  saturated  solution  sufficiently 
often  and  in  sufficient  quantities  for  a  dose  to  bring  out 
the  eruption,  and  your  patient  is  saved.  The  case  is 
converted  from  a  malignant  diphtheria  to  an  ordinary 
scarlatina,  with  a  great  tendency  to  recovery." 

In  a  partial  report  of  a  case,  in  the  same  article,  after 
enumerating  the  symptoms,  he  says :  "  If  aught  is  to  be 
done  here,  I  must  work  rapidly,  heroically,  because  these 
symptoms  point  ominously  to  a  fatal  termination. 
Kali,  chlor.  sat.  solution,  one  teaspoonful  every  hour 
from  five  p.m.,  until  ten  a.m.,  to-day.  At  that  time  at 
least  forty  grains  of  the  drug  will  have  been  given  to  a 
babe  of  two  years." 

Forty  grains  of  chlorate  of  potassa  in  less  than 
eighteen  hours ! !  Just  think  of  it.  If  these  forty 
grains  of  this  crude  material  were  carried  up  to  the 
thirtieth  potency,  and  every  inhabitant  of  the  earth  from 
its  creation  to  the  present  moment  had  devoted  his  entire 
existence  to  the  task  of  swallowing  pellets,  the  amount 
consumed  up  to  the  present  time  would  not  be  missed  ! 
And  if  carried  up  to  the  one  thousandth  potency,  a  new 


188  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

universe  would  have  to  be  created  and  exist  throughout 
an  eternity  to  consume  it. 

But  this  latter  gentleman  ought  to  be  encouraged  to 
go  on.  According  to  his  opinion  forty  grains  of  chlo- 
rate of  potassa  will  change  one  specific  disease  into 
another  of  less  malignancy.  Diphtheria,  which  is  a 
specific,  acute,  infectious  disease,  and  consequently 
propagated  by  its  own  specific  contagium  vivum,  is 
changed  into  another  specific,  acute,  infectious  disease, 
which  is  also  propagated  by  its  own  specific  cause,  by 
the  simple  administration  of  forty  grains  kali,  chlor.  (!) 

This  young  man  ought  by  all  means  to  continue  his 
investigations.  He  may  be  able  to  discover  something 
that  will  convert  smallpox  into  itch ;  typhoid  fever  into 
a  mere  febricula  ;  consumption  into  a  bad  cold ;  hydro- 
phobia into  hysteria,  and  so  ou.  Go  on  young  man  ! 
The  medical  world  awaits  the  results  of  your  researches 
with  bated  breath ! 

This  man  is  a  graduate  of  the  "Indiana  Medical  Col- 
lege ;"  has  been  an  eclectic,  and  is  now  (1879)  president 
of  the  State  Institute  of  Homoeopathy  of  one  of  our 
prominent  Western  States;  so  I  presume  his  orthodoxy 
in  homoeopathy  will  not  be  questioned. 

The  following  extract  is  from  the  "  Cincinnati  Medi- 
cal Advance"  May,  1880. 

In  reviewing  the  Annual  Report  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  the  Ohio  Institute  for  the  Education  of  the 
Blind,  for  1879,  the  editor  says : — 


HOMOEOPATHIC   DRUG-BILLS.  189 

"  For  this  interesting  volume  we  are  indebted  to  the 
physician  of  the  institution.  He  is  a  warm  personal 
friend  of  ours,  and  has  been  for  years  a  recognized 
member  of  the  homoeopathic  medical  school.  Dr.  F. 
has  been  in  charge  of  this  institution  about  two  years. 
He  reports :  '  The  institution  has  been  blessed  with  good 
health,  with  the  exception  of  the  month  of  December, 
when  there  were  eight  cases  of  typhoid  fever.  One  ma- 
lignant case  was  fatal.  Considering  the  feeble  constitu- 
tion of  the  blind,  their  health  is  above  the  average/ 
This,  we  agree,  is  a  good  showing  for  two  hundred  and 
forty-three  pupils,  a  small  portion  of  whom,  however, 
were  probably  on  the  sick  list.  As  the  report  of  the 
superintendent  is  very  full  in  the  matter  of  disburse- 
ments, we  turn  with  some  good  degree  of  interest  to  the 
hospital  stores,  and,  to  our  amazement,  we  make  out  the 
followiog : — 

"Arnica  (tincture  probably),  $5.50 ;  castor  oil  (two 
gallons  and  a  jug),  §2.35 ;  Wheeler's  elixir  (quantity 
not  stated),  $47.50 ;  Medicines  (sundries  from  drug 
store),  $15.95 ;  opium  tincture,  $1.25 ;  pills  (quinia, 
cathartic,  etc.)}  $27.25 ;  prescriptions  (sent  to  drug  store), 
.$21.65  ;  bromide  of  chloral,  $8.75  ;  paregoric,  $8.20  ; 
Rochelle  salts,  $4.40  ;  St.  Jacob's  oil,  50c;  syrup  squills, 
$2.10 ;  syrup  ipecac,  $2.25 ;  Fenton's  sarsaparilla, 
$2.00  ;  alcoholic  liquors,  $14.25. 

"  The  total  amount  charged  to  medical  stores,  of 
which  the  foregoing  is  a  part,  is  about  two  hundred  and 
seven  dollars  and  eighty  cents.  And  all  this  in  the  year 
1879.  Our  object  in  calling  attention  to  this  is  to  show 
Dr.  F.  how  badly  he  is  being  imposed  on.  It  is  simply 
impossible  that  these  things  are  being  used  by  his  order 
or  with  his  knowledge.  Dr.  F.  is  a  homoeopathic  practi- 
tioner, and  could  make  no  use  of  such  articles.  An 
allopath  might  and  would,  but  a  homoeopath  never. 
One  would  think  constipation  a  raging  epidemic  to  look 
at  the  castor  oil,  Rochelle  salts  and  cathartic  pills,  that 
have  been  apparently  poured  down  the  throats  of  the 
poor    blind    children.      Paregoric,   eight    dollars   and 


190  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

twenty  cents  worth !  There  is  no  evidence  in  the  exhibit 
that  any  homoeopathic  medicine  was  used  in  the  institu- 
tion." 

It  is  not  fair  to  presume  that  this  bill  of  drugs  was 
bought  by  the  Doctor's  allopathic  predecessor,  especially 
after  admitting  that  the  total  amount  expended  for  drugs 
was  $207.80 — all  in  1879 ;  and  the  Doctor  having  had 
charge  of  the  institution  for  two  years. 

A  short  time  since  the  County  Hospital  of  Sacramento, 
California,  was  in  charge  of  homoeopathic  physicians 
and  surgeons.  Quite  recently  they  have  been  relieved 
from  further  attendance  by  the  managers,  and  strange  to 
say  the  principal  charge  against  them  was  the  extrava- 
gant expenditure  of  money  for  drugs.  Among  the  items 
are  to  be  found  three  pounds  of  salicylic  acid  and  four 
thousand  grains  of  quinia. 

R.  Ludlam,  m.d.,  a  professor  in  the  Hahnemann 
Medical  College  and  Hospital  of  Chicago,  reports  the 
After-treatment  of  a  case  of  ovariotomy,  in  The  Clinique, 
August  15th,  1880. 

The  report  of  this  case  extends  over  a  period  of  some 
twenty-five  days.  The  temperature,  pulse  and  other 
symptoms  are  carefully  recorded.  The  treatment  pre- 
scribed consisted  of  the  usual  stereotyped,  orthodox, 
homoeopathic  remedies  such  as  Bell3,  Aconite*,  Merc*, 
China*,  Bry*,  Rhus.  Toxz,  Verat.  Vir.2,  Ars.™,  etc., 
together  with  the  daily  administration  of  six  or  eight 
grains  of  quinia.     The  patient  also  received  once,  and 


A   HOMOEOPATHIC   CLINIC.  191 

sometimes  twice  per  day,  from  the  one-twelfth  to  the  one- 
sixth  of  a  grain  of  morphia  hypodermically.  But  I  will 
append  the  professor's  exact  words  : — 

"     .     .  From  the  seventh  day,  when  suppuration 

began,  to  the  eighteenth  day,  she  took  six  grains  of  qui- 
nine daily.  Then  the  signs  of  abscess  appearing,  she 
took  eight  grains  daily.  Morphia  was  given  hypoder- 
mically every  night,  commencing  with  one-twelfth  of  a 
grain,  and  increasing  it  to  one-sixth  of  a  grain.  A  com- 
press, saturated  with  carbolized  cosmoline  and  glycerine, 
has  been  kept  constantly  on  the  wound  since  the  clamp 
dropped  off. 

'  .  .  .  I  ought  to  tell  you  that  it  is  not  my 
habit  to  continue  the  use  of  morphine  as  we  have  done 
in  this  case.  My  custom  has  been  to  prescribe  a  single 
dose  of  it,  to  be  given  hypodermically  the  first  night 
after  the  operation,  in  order  to  insure  the  necessary  rest 
and  sleep,  as  well  as  to  antidote  the  unpleasant  effects  of 
the  ether.  But  I  have  rarely  found  it  necessary  to  re- 
peat it  more  than  once  or  twice.  In  this  case,  however, 
it  was  a  question  whether,  in  her  weak  state,  with  a 
prospect  of  exhaustion  from  lack  of  nourishment,  we 
could  safely  allow  her  to  flounder  about  and  waste  her 
strength  through  worry  and  unrest.  For  she  had  no 
strength  to  lose,  and  we  were  obliged  to  economize  her 
resources  for  the  repair  of  her  wound,  and  for  her  final 
recovery. 

"  We  were  satisfied  that  the  morphia  did  not  disagree, 
or  do  the  least  harm  in  this  case  because  its  effect  was 
most  grateful,  and  in  every  instance  she  awakened  in 
the  morning  thoroughly  refreshed,  with  a  falling  tem- 
perature, a  stronger  pulse  and  a  better  appetite  than  she 
had  at  any  other  time  during  the  day  or  night.  I  did 
not  prescribe  it  with  a  view  to  abort  or  to  mitigate  the 
peritonitis  ;  for  I  am  satisfied  that  in  bryonia,  bella- 
donna, rhus.  tox.  and  terebinth,  we  have  better  remedies 
than  opium  for  the  peritonitis  that  is  incident  to  ovari- 
otomy. ******** 


192  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

"  There  were  two  indications  for  the  quinine,  viz.:  for 
its  tonic  effect  in  supplementing  the  appetite  and  on 
account  of  its  anti-purulent  properties.  Given  in  doses 
of  two  grains  it  did  not  produce  the  least  degree  of  cin- 
chonism,  nor  did  it  prevent  suppuration."* 


If  the  attenuated  homoeopathic  remedies  which  are 
interspersed  throughout  the  report  of  this  case  were 
expunged,  leaving  nothing  but  the  morphia  and  quinia, 
with  the  reasons  assigned  for  their  administration  by 
Professor  Ludlam,  the  treatment  pursued  would  be 
accepted  at  a  clinic  of  the  most  fastidious  so-called 
"  regulars"  without  serious  criticism.  It  is  the  custom- 
ary practice  now  to  prescribe  morphia  in  almost  every 
case  after  this  operation  j  and  in  nearly  all  quinia  is 
used  extensively.  In  what  few  cases  I  have  operated 
upon,  those  two  articles  have  constituted  the  principal 
medicines  used  in  the  after-treatment.t 

Professor  Ludlam  occupies  a  conspicuous  place  in  the 
school  of  homoeopathy  especially  in  the  Northwest.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  faculty  in  a  prominent  college  of 
that  faith,  and  is  referred  to  with  pride  by  the  disciples 
of  Hahnemann,  as  an  author  and  teacher.  Hence,  his 
teachings  and  sayings  carry  with  them  the  weight  of 
authority;  yet  the  practice  pursued  in  this  case  was  clearly 
antipathic,  and  not  homoeopathic  ;  for  every  principle  of 
the  latter  school  was  violated  ;  the  law  of  similars,  dilu- 
tions, the  single  remedy,  local  applications,  etc.,  etc. 

*  The  C Unique,  page  259. 

f  See  American  Practitioner,  May,  1880. 


HOMOEOPATHIC   HONOR  AND   HONESTY.  193 

I  wish  to  call  attention  to  a  specimen  of  homoeopathic 
honor  and  honesty,  in  the  management  of  the  hospital 
under  their  charge,  upon  Ward's  Island,  taken  from  the 
New  York  Medical  Gazette,  May  22d,  1880:— 

For  the  present,  however,  we 

pass  this  matter  by,  for  the  purpose  of  calling  special 
attention  to  one  of  the  most  shameful  transactions  that 
any  person  with  a  vestige  of  honor  could  be  cognizant 
of  without  denouncing  it  in  the  strongest  terms,  or  else 
sacrifice  his  self-respect.  We  speak  of  the  manner  of 
conducting  affairs  at  the  Homoeopathic  Hospital  on 
Ward's  Island,  narrated  below.  This  thing  has  gone  on 
for  three  or  four  years  and  it  is  about  time  that  the 
responsible  parties,  the  incompetent  and  ignorant  Com- 
missioners, should  be  called  to  an  account. 

THE   HOMOEOPATHIC   HOSPITAL. 

"  Some  six  months  ago  our  attention  was  called,  by  one 
of  the  inmates,  to  certain  abuses  which  were  being:  car- 
ried  on  in  the  Homoeopathic  Hospital,  on  Ward's 
Island.  At  first  we  thought  that  the  statements  were 
made  vindictively,  believing  that  no  matter  how  much 
the  homoeopaths  might  differ  from  us  in  matters  purely 
medical,  they  still  were  gentlemen  and  had  as  keen 
a  sense  of  gentlemanly  honor  as  any  of  us.  It  seems, 
however,  that  among  the  lights  in  the  homoeopathic 
ranks  there  are  to  be  found  men  who  will  stoop  to  do 
and  to  sanction  acts  so  contemptible  that  the  greatest 
criminal  would  blush  to  be  thought  guilty  of.  And  yet 
these  men  call  themselves  gentlemen. 

"  We  have  of  late  been  investigating  the  charges,  with 
a  view  of  collecting  proof  sufficiently  overwhelming  to 
justify  us  in  bringing  the  matter  before  the  legislature, 
but  the  ubiquitous  newspaper  reporter  has  given  the 
whole  story  to  the  public  rather  prematurely  for  our 
plans.  Here  it  is,  copied  from  one  of  our  leading 
dailies : — 

13 


194  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

" t  On  Ward's  Island  is  the  Homoeopathic  Hospital. 
The  building  used  for  this  hospital  was  originally  built 
in  the  time  of  the  Tweed  Ring,  and  fabulous  amounts 
of  money  have  been  squandered  upon  it.  First  it  was 
an  inebriate  asylum,  and  $800,000  were  spent  upon  it. 
Next,  it  was  the  Soldiers'  Retreat,  and  it  is  supposed 
that  a  similar  amount  was  squandered  in  fitting  it  up  as 
such.  The  building  being  vacated  by  the  soldiers  in 
1874,  the  friends  of  the  homoeopathic  school  of  medi- 
cine thought  their  turn  was  next.  So,  a  tremendous 
political  pressure  was  successfully  brought  to  bear  on 
the  Commissioners  to  furnish  the  building  for  the 
homoeopaths.  This  was  the  first  public  hospital  ever 
secured  by  the  homoeopaths,  and  it  is  costing  the  tax- 
payers of  the  city  §60,000  a  year.  The  homoeopaths, 
so  it  is  alleged,  discovered  that  the  convalescent  patients 
at  the  other  hospitals  got  passes  to  go  to  and  from  the 
city,  and  at  once  utilized  this  discovery.  Instead  of 
giving  passes  the  applicant  was  told  to  go  and  when  re- 
turning to  call  at  the  Commissioners'  office  and  get  a  new 
permit.  Thus,  it  is  said  the  same  patient  often  counted 
as  two,  three,  four  or  more  patients  admitted.  Numbers 
of  them  were  sent  out  in  this  manner  a  dozen  times.  By 
this  means  the  admissions  and  discharges  (as  cured)  were 
increased  300  per  cent.,  and  the  percentage  of  deaths 
of  course  was  correspondingly  low.  The  mortality  in 
the  three  leading  hospitals  the  first  year  after  the  ho- 
moeopathic started  was,  Bellevue  Hospital,  12 J  per  cent.; 
Charity  Hospital,  8J  per  cent.;  Homoeopathic  Hospital, 
6  per  cent.  On  the  publication  of  this  result  homoeo- 
pathic organs  grew  jubilant.  The  same  course  was  pur- 
sued the  ensuing  year,  and  the  result  (on  paper)  was 
about  the  same,  while  all  the  time  the  actual  percentage, 
it  is  declared,  was  about  eighteen".  After  nearly  three 
years  of  this  adroit  management  the  Commissioners 
began  to  find  it  very  troublesome  to  be  issuing  so  many 
fresh  permits  to  the  same  individuals,  so  an  order  was 
issued  to  let  parties  wanting  passes  have  them.  But  the 
homoeopaths  were  equal  to  the  emergency,  and  the  next 


HOMOEOPATHIC   PRESCRIPTIONS.  195 

device,  it  is  alleged,  was  to  discharge  the  sick  and  keep 
the  healthy  in  the  building.  This  piece  of  strategy,  it 
is  said,  has  been  carried  out  during  the  past  year,  and 
when  the  annual  report  for  1879  is  published,  the  mor- 
tality report  of  the  Homoeopathic  Hospital  will  once 
more  appear  (on  paper)  astonishingly  low/ 

Ul  Comment  is  unnecessary.  Homoeopathy  has  of  late 
years  made  many  attempts  to  commit  suicide.  Let  us 
hope  that  such  nefarious  practices  as  that  recorded  above 
will  save  it  the  trouble  of  another  attempt/  " 

In  the  Medical  Press  and  Circular  for  September 
15th,  1880,  an  English  journal,  is  published  the  follow- 
ing extract  from  a  correspondent  of  the  Chemist  and 
Druggist : — 

"  '  Homoeopathy  is  either  a  huge  lie  or  a  Divine 
truth/  so  its  professors  tell  us,  and  I  for  one  am  willing 
to  acknowledge  it  so ;  but  which  of  the  two  may  be  ex- 
plained by  the  following  case  : — 

"  A  lady  suffering  from  neuralgia  recently  went  to  a 
celebrated  '  homoeopathic'  (?). physician  in  the  West  End. 
The  following  were  the  prescriptions  given  : — 

(1.)  R.     Quin.  sulph.  solub.,  gr.iv 

Fiat  pulv. 
To  be  taken  four  times  a  day. 

(2.)  R.     Lin.  belladon.  (B.P.),  %  ss 

Chloroformi,  %  ss 

Nepenthe,  £j.  M. 

Fiat  linim. 

(3.)  R.     Allen  &  Hanbury's  "  Perfected"  cod-liver  oil,  Ibss. 

(4.)  R.     Quin.  sulph.,  gr.xlviij 

Sp.  chloroformi,  ,^j 

Sp.  vini  rect.,  3  j 

Ac.  hydro,  dil.,  q.s. 

Aq. ,  ad      %  iv. 
A  teaspoonful  three  times  a  day. 

(5.)  R.     Liq.  strych.  nit.  (1-200),  ^iiss 

Ac.  nit.  dil.  (1-10),  .sjiiss 

Aq..  ad      %  iv. 

A  teaspoonful  three  times  a  day,  in  water. 


196  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

"  The  whole  of  these  medicaments  were  to  be  used  con- 
currently, except  Nos.  4  and  5,  which  were  to  be  used 
alternate  weeks. 

"  I  myself  saw  the  prescription  in  question,  so  can 
vouch  for  the  truth  of  this  statement.  Verily  i  homoeo- 
pathy is  a  huge  lie/  " 

If  this  is  a  fair  example  of  homoeopathic  practice  all 
candid  persons  will  be  compelled  to  indorse  the  conclu- 
sion of  the  correspondent.  All  the  important  principles 
of  the  school  are  violated  in  these  prescriptions. 


CHANGES  BY   EVOLUTION.  197 


CHAPTER  XYI. 

Summary — Similia — Kidd's  Laws  of  Therapeutics — Contraria 
Contrariis — Galenas  Law — Cases  from  Kidd's  Practice — 
Totality  of  Symptoms  and  Pathological  Lesions — Similar 
Diseases  Associated  in  the  Same  Individual — Natural  Dis- 
eases Essentially  Dissimilar — Pathology  of  No  Use  in  Select- 
ing a  Remedy — Drug- Disease — Domain  of  Similia — Propo 
sitions,  Discussions  and  Conclusions — CJiemical,  Mechanical 
and  Physical  Forces — Tonics  and  Restoratives — Metaphysical 
Discussions  on  Therapeutical  Laws — Slow  Advance  of  Ho- 
moeopathy in  Old  World — International  Hahnemannian 
Association. 

It  will  be  seen  by  the  perusal  of  the  preceding  pages 
that  homoeopathy  has  departed  widely  from  the  original 
principles  taught  by  Hahnemann.  A  process  of  evolu- 
tion has  been  going  on  and  will  continue  until  the  most 
objectionable  principles  of  the  school  will  be  eliminated. 
This  has  been  effected  to  a  great  degree  in  regard  to 
Hahnemann's  spirit-like  pathology  and  etiology.  Also 
to  provings,  the  single  remedy  and  dilutions  and  tritu- 
rations. Dynamization  by  agitation  has  also  been 
abandoned  by  homoeopathists  who  have  any  knowledge 
of  physical  forces.  Psora,  that  "  monstrous  miasm,"  as 
a  cause  of  chronic  disease,  is  seldom  mentioned  now ; 
while  the  administration  of  medicine  by  olfaction  has 
been  almost  entirely  discarded  by  even  those  who  claim 
to  be  pure  homoeopathists.     In  truth,  there  is  but  one 


198  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

plank  remaining  in  the  entire  platform  of  homoeopathy, 
the  law  of  similars,  and  even  it  has  begun  to  give  way. 
The  divinity  of  this  law,  which  Hahnemann  claimed,  is 
now  seriously  questioned  by  some  of  his  followers. 

Dr.  Kidd,  in  his  liLaws  of  Therapeutics"  abandons 
everything  claimed  by  homoeopathy,  excepting  the 
principle  of  "similia  similibus  curantur"  but  does  not 
claim  even  this  to  be  a  universal  law : — 

"Twenty-seven  years  ago  I  saw  that  the  essential 
truth  of  Hahnemann's  law  was  totally  independent  of 
his  speculations  about  dynamization.  Adopting  with 
great  delight  the  law  of  '  similia  similibus  curantur'  as 
the  chief,  though  not  the  only,  foundation  for  therapeu- 
tics, I  learned  for  myself  that  Hahnemann's  'sober'  teach- 
ing, the  use  of  the  pure,  undiluted  tinctures,  was  a  far 
better  guide  to  heal  the  sick  than  Hahnemann  'drunk' 
with  mysticism,  calling  for  the  exclusive  use  of  infinitesi- 
mal doses.  The  latter  I  gradually  cast  aside  in  toto,  as 
untrustworthy  and  unjust  to  the  sick,  whose  diseases  too 
often  remained  stationary  under  treatment  by  globules, 
but  were  most  effectually  and  quickly  cured  by  tangible 
doses  of  the  same  medicines  which  failed  to  cure  when 
given  in  infinitesimal  doses."* 

"  The  physiological  action  of  medicinal  agents  stands  in 
some  positive  relationship  to  its  curative  action  in  disease. 
In  most  cases  that  relationship  is  either  of  similarity  or 
of  contrariety.  Some  few  instances  seem  to  stand  out,  as 
of  no  apparent  relationship,  but  they  are  few,  and  deeper 
investigation  brings  them  in  amenable  to  one  or  the 
other.  Each  law  has  its  own  way  or  behavior,  so  to 
speak. 

"  Looking  to  the  observation  of  facts,  apart  from  the 
theoretic  speculations,  two  primary  laws  of  therapeutics 
unfold  themselves.       As  Galvani  and    Faraday   have 

*  Kidd' s  Laws  of  Therapeutics,  page  35. 


THERAPEUTIC   LAWS.  199 

afforded  names  for  Galvanism  and  Faradism,  those  two 
laws  of  therapeutics  may  well  be  called  Galen's  law,  or 
the  antipathic,  founded  upon  the  rule  of  "  contraria 
contrariis,"  and  Hahnemann's,  or  the  homoeopathic  law, 
founded  upon  the  relationship  of  similars. 

"  When  the  relationship  of  the  medicinal  action  is  con- 
trary to  the  signs  and  symptoms  of  disease,  it  is  necessary 
to  give  doses  large  enough  to  produce  the  full  physio- 
logical or  primary  action "* 

"  Rejoicing  to  enlarge  the  boundaries  of  knowledge, 
true  science  cannot  ignore  any  law,  though  its  sphere  of 
action  be  limited  and  not  of  universal  application. 
Galen's  law  of  '  contraria  contrariis'  has  its  place,  and 
a  very  prominent  place,  still  in  the  practice  of  every 
physician.  The  therapeutic  action  of  certain  medicines 
seems  to  lie  altogether,  or  nearly  so,  in  that  direction.     . 

"t 

Dr.  Kidd  reports  numerous  cases  from  practice  which 
he  claims  to  be  sufficient  to  establish  the  law  of  similars. 
Some  of  these  cases  are  both  amusing  and  instructive, 
but  I  must  confess  that  my  faculties  of  generalization 
are  not  sufficient  to  enable  me  to  deduce  any  general 
law  of  therapeutics  from  a  perusal  of  them. 

"Exophthalmic  Goitre. — A  young  lady  (Miss  E.), 
aged  twenty-four,  was  brought  to  me  in  1850,  suffering 
from  enlargement  of  the  neck,  throbbing  and  distention 
of  the  eyes,  which  looked  as  if  protruding  from  their 
sockets;  she  also  complained  of  distressing  headache. 
For  some  months  she  had  been  under  the  care  of  the 
family  attendant  at  Canonbury,  who  administered  small 
doses  of  iodine.  The  patient  getting  no  better,  this  gen- 
tleman took  her  to  the  late  Sir  B.  B.,  who  prescribed 
large  doses  of  iodide  without  any  relief.  She  then  con- 
sulted Dr.  C.  J.  B.  W.,  who  prescribed  iodide  of  iron ; 

*  Kidd's  Laws  of  Therapeutics,  page  82.     f  Idem,  page  103. 


200  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

this  aggravated  the  headache,  and  did  not  relieve  the 
enlargement  of  the  neck,  nor  the  distended  eyeballs. 
She  then  consulted  me ;  I  recognized  the  disease  as  ex- 
ophthalmic goitre,  from  Dr.  Graves's  admirable  descrip- 
tion, although  up  to  that  time  I  had  never  treated  a  case 
of  it.  I  knew  that  belladonna  caused,  in  the  healthy 
human  subject,  headache,  with  throbbing  in  the  head 
and  eyes,  with  vascular  excitement.  Of  this  I  pre- 
scribed four  drops  of  the  tincture  three  times  a  day.  It 
afforded  immediate  relief  to  the  headache,  gradually 
lessened  the  swelling  of  the  neck  and  the  protrusion  of 
the  eyes.  It  was  taken  regularly  for  about  six  weeks, 
and  the  cure  proved  permanent,  one  of  the  most  satis- 
factory I  ever  witnessed.  In  the  treatment  of  exoph- 
thalmic goitre  this  case  is,  I  believe,  the  first  case  of  the 
successful  use  of  belladonna  in  that  disease.  I  published 
this  case  in  the  British  Journal  of  Homoeopathy,  vol. 
xxv,  in  1867."* 

Here  is  a  grave  pathological  lesion  which  gives  rise 

to  a  certain  group  of  disordered  sensations,  called  the 

"  totality  of  symptoms,"  in  accordance  with  which  the 

tincture  of  belladonna  is  prescribed,  the  real  pathological 

condition  being  ignored.     This  totality  of  symptoms  is 

not  confined  exclusively  to  this  disease,  but  may  be,  and 

frequently  is,  present  in  other  diseased  conditions  of  the 

system ;  and  under  the  law  belladonna  would  be  equally 

appropriate.     If  this  case  was  cured  by  the  operation  of 

a  general  law,  the  cure  in  all  similar  cases  ought  to  be 

the   rule   and   failure   the    exception.     This   case   was 

treated  by  Dr.  Kidd  in  1850,  and  published   in  1867; 

his  work  on  the  Laws  of  Therapeutics  was  published  in 

1879.    Why  did  he  have  but  one  case  to  report  ?    Why 

*  Page  94  of  Kidd's  Laws  of  Therapeutics. 


EXCEPTIONS   TO  SIMILIA.  201 

have  not  our  magazines  been  teeming  with  cures  of  ex- 
ophthalmic goitre  by  the  administration  of  tincture  of 
belladonna?  The  natural  inference  is  that  this  case 
was  the  exception  and  not  the  rule,  and  that  the  facts 
are  bad  for  the  divine  law  of  similia  similibus  curantur; 
and  the  truth  is  that  the  cure  in  this  case  will  have  to 
be  attributed  to  some  other  influence  than  that  of  the 
belladonna. 

"  Miss ,  aged  nineteen,  suffered  for  three  years,  all 

through  the  summer,  from  the  worst  form  of  hay  asthma, 
producing  sneezing,  coryza,  redness  of  the  eyes,  dysp- 
noea, with  dry  wheezing  and  cough.  In  the  beginning 
of  the  summer  of  1868  she  consulted  me.  I  prescribed 
arsenic  (Fowler's  solution),  four  drops  three  times  a  day, 
with  immediate  benefit;  so  much  so  that  she  was 
enabled  to  live  in  London  (Euston  Square)  all  the  sum- 
mer. The  occasional  use,  for  three  or  four  days,  of  the 
arsenic  kept  her  in  perfect  comfort,  although  the  previous 
three  years  she  found  no  relief  till  she  went  to  the  sea- 
side.''* 

This  is  certainly  another  exception  to  the  rule,  for 
who  has  not  habitually  prescribed  Fowler's  solution  for 
hay  fever  ?  I  have  not  treated  a  case  of  this  disease,  for 
twenty  years,  without,  at  some  period  during  its  manage- 
ment, having  administered  this  remedy,  and.  have  never 
succeeded  in  producing  anything  more  than  temporary 
relief,  and  frequently  not  so  much  as  that. 

"A  gentleman,  A.  S.,  suffered  for  upwards  of  a  year 
from  sciatica;  the  pain  he  described  was  an  aching 
numbness  along  the  course  of  the  sciatic  nerve.  He  had 
used  medicines  internally  and  externally  for  a   year, 

*  Page  94  of  Kidd's  Laws  of  Therapeutics. 


202  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

baths  of  various  sorts,  galvanism,  without  any  but  tem- 
porary relief.  I  prescribed  four  drops  of  tincture  of 
aconite  three  times  a  day.  After  three  days  there  was 
no  appreciable  relief,  when  the  dose  was  increased  to  six 
drops,  yet  without  result.  Satisfied  with  the  essential 
relationship  of  the  numbness  which  aconite  always  pro- 
duces to  the  numbness  of  his  sciatica,  I  ordered  him  to 
increase  the  dose  to  seven  drops.  This  quickly  and  per- 
manently cured  this  disease  of  upwards  of  a  year's 
duration.  ' About  half  an  hour  after  I  took  the  seven 
drops/  the  patient  said,  'a  peculiar  thrill  shot  into  the 
thigh  and  leg  of  that  side  increasing  the  numbness.' 
He  took  two  doses  more,  of  seven  drops  each,  and  was 
perfectly  cured ;  thus,  although  the  relationship  of  the 
medicine  was  similar  to  the  disease,  the  small  dose  was 
insufficient  to  cure."* 

Unfortunately  for  suffering  humanity  this  case  is  cer- 
tainly an  exception,  for  to  cure  sciatica  with  aconite  is 
not  the  rule.  A  general  law  should  be  more  universal 
in  its  application.  It  is  not  claimed  for  this  law  that 
there  is  any  similarity  in  pathological  lesions  between 
what  homceopathists  claim,  to  be  the  drug-disease  and 
the  natural  disease  to  be  treated.  The  similarity  is  con- 
fined to  the  "disordered  sensorial  condition."  The  real 
lesion  is  entirely  ignored,  and  hence  the  same  remedy  is 
prescribed  for  a  great  variety  of  diseases  totally  different 
in  their  etiology  and  pathology,  provided  the  totality  of 
symptoms  is  similar  to  the  pathogenetic  symptoms  caused 
by  the  provings  of  the  drug. 

It  is  now  a  conceded  fact  that  diseases  (real  patho- 
logical conditions)  which  have  heretofore  been  considered 
*  Page  109  of  Kidd's  Laws  of  Therapeutics. 


SIMILARS   AND   DISSIMTLARS   COMBINED.         203 

similar  to  each  other,  both  in  symptoms  and  lesions,  may 
be  and  frequently  are  associated  together  in   the  same 
individual.     It  is  certain  also,  that  under  these  circum- 
stances neither  disease  has  any  tendency  to  relieve  the 
other,  but  adds  greatly  to  the  danger  already  present. 
The  acute  infectious  diseases  are  frequently  associated  in 
this  way ;  such  as  measles  and  scarlatina,  diphtheria  and 
scarlatina,  diphtheria  and  measles,  malarial  and  typhoid 
fever,  relapsing  fever  and  measles,  and  so  on,  almost 
through  the  entire  list.     The  disordered  sensations  pre- 
sent, the   subjective   and   objective   symptoms,  together 
with  many  lesions,  are  similar  or  are  common  in  these 
diseases  when  associated  in  the  same  individual  case ;  yet 
the  presence  of  each  additional  disease  only  adds  severity 
to  the  symptoms  and  increases  the  danger  to  the  patient. 
Even  the  same  specific   disease   may  and   does   differ 
widely   in   different   individuals.     Take   scarlatina,  for 
example,  which  is  usually  divided  into  three  varieties, 
the  si  mplex,  the  angi  nose  and  the  mal  ignant.    In  preserib- 
ing  for  this  disease  the  homoeopath  would  be  governed  by 
the  totality  of  symptoms,  which  would  be  different  in 
each  class  of  cases,  ignoring  the  specific  cause  or  special 
pathology  of  the  disease  and  closing  the  door  against 
specific  treatment,  although  in  some  parts  of  the  wrorld 
the  name  of  the  specific  school  of  medicine  is  claimed. 
There  can  be  no  real  similarity  between  natural  diseases 
or  diseased  processes.     They  are  either  identical  or  dis- 
similar, and   the  difference  is  one  of  degree  only.     I 


204  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

think  the  proposition  might  be  laid  down,  without  fear 
of  successful  contradiction,  that  all  natural  diseases  are 
dissimilar.  Suppose,  to  illustrate  this  proposition,  we 
take  a  point  on  a  circle  and  agree  that  all  diseases  which 
can  be  arranged  upon  this  point  are  identical.  Let  us 
place  upon  this  point  scarlatina,  for  an  example.  All 
cases  of  this  disease  being  caused  by  the  same  specific 
poison,  we  will  say  are  identical,  although  they  may 
differ  widely  in  their  totality  of  symptoms.  Now,  as  we 
proceed  to  arrange  our  diseases  around  this  circle  accord- 
ing to  the  resemblance  they  are  supposed  to  have  with 
the  one  with  which  we  began,  suppose  we  take  for  the 
next  example  diphtheria,  another  specific  disease  caused 
by  its  own  contagion ;  and  we  will  concede,  for  the  sake 
of  the  argument,  that  this  is  a  similar  disease  to  scarla- 
tina ;  yet  the  two  are  not  identical,  and  consequently 
must  be  dissimilar.  They  differ  in  etiology,  symptoma- 
tology, pathology,  invasion,  duration,  termination  and 
sequelae.  Yet  the  similitude  of  symptoms  made  up  from 
the  "  disordered  sensorial  condition "  of  the  patients  is 
similar,  and  forms  the  basis  for  the  homceopathists' 
therapeutical  procedure. 

Continuing  this  arrangement  we  would  perhaps  select 
measles,  German  measles,  roseola,  variola,  etc.,  and  place 
them  at  points  upon  this  circle  according  to  their  sup- 
posed similarity  or  dissimilarity,  until  we  arrive  at  a 
point  directly  opposite  that  selected  for  identity,  and 
here  we  have  the  greatest  degree  of  dissimilarity ;   but 


SIMILARS   AND   DISSIMILAES.  205 

all  diseases  between  these  two  points  are  essentially  dis- 
similar and  differing  only  in  degree.  But  if  similarity 
is  conceded  for  those  diseases  nearest  the  point  of  iden- 
tity, then  all  diseases  are  similar,  the  difference  being 
one  of  degree  only,  for  no  man  would  be  able  to  draw 
the  line  and  decide  where  similarity  ends  and  dissimi- 
larity begins. 

If  these  diseases  are  similar  and  there  is  any  truth  in 
the  law  of  similars,  howT  easy  it  would  be  to  cure  scarla- 
tina by  infecting  the  system  with  the  virus  of  diphtheria. 
But  where  is  the  horuceopathist  who,  in  his  silliest  day, 
would  undertake  such  a  hazardous  proceeding?  But, 
says  the  homoeopathist,  "  It  is  not  the  changed  tissue, 
but  the  dynamic  condition  which  produces  the  change. 
This  is  the  thing  to  be  treated."* 

"  Pathology  is  not  without  its  use,  but  that  use  is  not 
in  the  problem  of  selecting  the  most  appropriate  remedy. 
Pathology  does  not,  indeed,  often  tell  us  whether  a  new 
symptom  is  of  favorable  or  unfavorable  import,  and 
hence  whether  it  requires  to  be  treated  or  not;  but  in  the 
actual  selection  it  is  not  of  the  slightest  value,  not  only 
because  it  is  theoretical,  and  hence  more  or  less  uncer- 
tain, but  because,  even  at  its  best,  it  can  only  generalize, 
and  not  individualize."  f 

The  homoeopathists  do  not  propose  to  substitute  one 

natural  disease  or  pathological  lesion  for  another,  but  an 

artificial  drug-disease,  which  must  be  stronger  than  the 

*  President's  Address  at  American  Homoeopathic  Institute,  June, 
1880. 

f  From  an   Address  by  E.  W.  Berridge,  m.d.,  joint  editor  of 
the  Organon,  one  of  the  leading  English  homoeopathic  journals, 
before   the   American   Institute  of  Homoeopathy,  at  Milwaukee 
June,  1880. 


206  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

natural  disease,  and  although  the  vital  force  is  unable 
to  remove  this  natural  disease,  it  is  perfectly  competent 
to  overcome  the  more  powerful  drug-disease  after  it  has 
accomplished  the  removal  of  the  said  natural  disease ! 
Therefore  the  vital  force  is  unable  to  contend  with  the 
weaker  natural  disease,  but  is  abundantly  able  to  vanquish 
the  stronger  drug-disease  !  I 

In  discussing  the  domain  of  similia,  in  a  recent  num- 
ber of  the  Hahnemannian  Monthly,  Doctor  Dake  lays 
down  some  propositions  and  draws  conclusions  there- 
from, which  I  propose  to  insert  here ;  coming  as  they 
do  from  a  homoeopathic  writer  of  recognized  ability, 
they  are  doubly  interesting. 

"  Most  of  the  opposition  to  the  acceptance  of  the 
homoeopathic  principle  among  medical  men  of  education 
and  candor,  as  well  as  much  of  the  dissension  among 
those  who  claim  to  recognize  it  as  a  practical  guide,  has 
come  from  a  misapprehension  of  the  field  and  the  means 
embraced  under  its  control. 

"  Exceedingly  misty,  and  many  times  absurd,  have 
been  the  conceptions  of  it,  as  placed  before  the  public 
by  medical  writers. 

"  I  am  persuaded  that  a  great  number  of  men  who 
assume  the  position  of  leaders  in  medicine,  as  well  as  in 
other  departments  of  human  learning,  and  who  talk 
and  write  much  of  principles  and  laws,  fail  to  have  a 
definite  idea  of  what  is  expressed  in  those  terms.  Some 
seem  to  regard  physical  principles  as  '  heaven-born'  and 
revealed  to  man  from  above  and  beyond  and  independ- 
ently of  his  own  studies  and  endeavors,  as  ordinances  at 
once  infallible  and  universal.  They  would  require  an 
unquestioning  acceptance  of  such  revelations,  and  a 
childlike  adoration  of  the  persons  through  whom  they 
are  made  known.'7 


DOMAIN   OF  SIMILIA.  207 

"  It  is  clear  that  such  leaders  are  mistaking  the 
natural  for  the  supernatural,  and  the  scientific  for  the 
religious 

"  Now,  in  medicine,  I  need  not  here  speak  of  the 
classification  of  drugs  and  the  deduction  of  therapeutic 
principles  from  clinical  experiences,  and  the  formation 
of  systems  and  schools. 

"Suffice  it  to  say  that  Hahnemann  discovered  the 
universality  of  the  principles  expressed  in  the  terms 
similia  similibus  curantur;  that  affections  in  the  sick  are 
removed  by  agencies  capable  of  inducing  similar  affec- 
tions in  the  well. 

"  The  term  universality,  in  this  connection,  does  not 
imply  that  Hahnemann's  principle  was  ever  supposed  by 
him  to  apply  to  everything  in  the  universe,  nor  even  to 
all  the  diseases  of  human  kind. 

"  He  knew,  better  than  many  of  his  followers  seem  to 
know,  the  limitations  of  his  law. 

"  Professor  Jevons  says :  '  In  a  scientific  point  of 
view  general  principles  must  be  universal  as  regards 
some  distinct  class  of  objects,  or  they  are  not  principles 
at  all.' 

"  Now  we  come  to  consider  in  regard  to  what  class  of 
objects  the  homoeopathic  principle  is  universal. 

"  Advancing  by  the  method  of  exclusion  I  may  say: 

"  1.  That  it  relates  to  nothing  but  affections  of  health. 

"  2.  That  it  relates  to  no  affections  of  health  where  the 
cause  is  constantly  present  and  operative. 

"  3.  That  it  relates  to  no  affections  of  health  which 
will  cease  after  the  removal  of  the  cause  by  chemical,  or 
mechanical,  or  hygienic  means. 

"  4  That  it  relates  to  no  affections  of  health  occa- 
sioned by  the  injury  or  destruction  of  tissues  which  are 
incapable  of  restoration. 

"  5.  That  it  relates  to  no  affections  of  health  where 
vital  energy  or  reactive  vital  power  is  exhausted. 

"  6.  That  it  relates  to  no  affections  of  health  the  like- 
ness of  which  may  not  be  produced  in  the  healthy  by 
medicines  or  other  agencies. 


208  MEDICAL    HERESIES. 

"  I  need  not  stop  to  explain  nor  enforce  these  propo- 
sitions, since  they  must  be  apparent  to  every  reader  at 
all  versed  in  the  writings  of  Hahnemann  and  the  general 
literature  of  homoeopathy. 

"  Looking  over  the  field  of  human  ailments,  now,  to 
see  what  is  left  after  the  exclusion  of  all  the  classes  I 
have  mentioned,  we  find  yet  one  class,  namely,  human 
affections  similar  to  those  producible  by  medicines  and 
other  agencies,  existing  in  organisms  having  the  in- 
tegrity of  tissue  and  reactive  power  necessary  for  recovery \ 
the  efficient  causes  of  the  affections  having  ceased  to  ope- 
rate. 

"  Here  we  find  the  domain  of  similia — the  distinct  class 
of  objects,  the  affections,  regarding  which  it  is  a  general 
principle,  and  in  the  treatment  of  which  it  is  a  universal 
law. 

"  And  looking  again,  this  time  in  the  direction  of 
medicines  and  other  agencies  capable  of  influencing  the 
human  organism,  as  to  health,  and  advancing  as  before, 
by  the  method  of  exclusion,  I  may  say — 

"  1.  That  Hahnemann's  law  relates  to  the  action  of 
no  agents  affecting  the  organism  chemically. 

"  2.  That  it  relates  to  the  action  of  no  agents  affecting 
the  organism  mechanically. 

"3.  That  it  relates  to  the  influence  of  no  agencies 
affecting  the  organism  hygienically. 

"  4.  That  it  relates  to  the  action  of  no  agents  destroy- 
ing the  parasites  which  infest  or  prey  upon  the  human 
organism. 

"  I  presume  I  need  not  spend  time  to  demonstrate 
these  propositions.     They  cannot  be  disputed. 

"Looking  over  the  armamentarium  of  the  therapeutist, 
for  the  agents  not  excluded,  we  find  one  class  remaining, 
namely :  those  agents  which  affect  the  organism,  as  to 
health,  in  ways  not  governed  by  the  laws  of  chemistry, 
mechanics  or  hygiene,  producing  ailments  similar  to  those 
found  in  the  sick. 

"  Here  we  come  to  the  domain  of  similia  again,  by  a 
different  route,  and  find  the  distinct  class  of  agents  re- 


DOMAIN  OF   SIMILIA.  209 

garding  the  action  of  which,  in  disease,  it  is  a  general 
principle,  and  in  the  employment  of  which  it  is  the  para- 
mount law. 

"  When  the  therapeutist  comes  to  the  use  of  this  class 
of  means,  in  the  treatment  of  the  class  of  ailments  which 
I  have  shown  to  be  in  the  domain  of  similia,  he  must 
recognize  and  faithfully  obey  Hahnemann's  law  or  fail 
in  the  accomplishment  of  cures. 

"And  when  he  employs  this  class  alone,  in  affections 
calling  for  chemical  antidotes,  or  mechanical  measures, 
or  hygienic  influences  only,  he  is  invading  another  do- 
main and  infringing  other  laws,  and  must  experience 
miserable  and  disgraceful  failures. 

"As  well  might  the  botanist  attempt  to  follow  a 
principle  in  optics,  or  the  mineralogist  a  principle  in 
biology,  in  the  pursuit  of  his  occupation. 

"Similia  has  its  peculiar  domain,  in  which  it  is  a 
general  principle,  and  its  system  of  medical  practice  in 
which  it  is  a  universal  law. 

"  Outside  of  that  domain  it  has  no  applicability,  no 
meaning,  and  is  simply  nothing.  _       •  m 

"  Extravagant  claims  in  its  behalf  do  but  mislead  its 
votaries  and  disgust  men  of  learning  and  candor,  to 
whom  it  will  be  in  the  future,  as  in  the  past,  a  stumbling 
block  in  the  way  to  homoeopathy. 

"It  may  suit  the  cunning  partisan,  fattening  upon 
sectarian  differences,  and  the  zealot,  of  contracted  vision 
and  enthusiasm  infinite,  to  toss  their  hats  and  shout,  in 
the  face  of  all  learning  and  honesty:  'Similia!  the  all  in 
all  of  therapeutics  !  we  want  nothing  but  SIMILIA !! 

"  But  they  who  appreciate  principles  in  science  and 
laws  in  nature,  are  sober,  modest,  and  friendly — patient, 
persistent,  and  progressive — as  ready  to  forsake  the  false 
as  to  embrace  the  true,  and  always  satisfied  that  the  right 
must  prevail." 

These  propositions  and  conclusions  of  Dr.  Dake,  if 
accepted,  settle  the  entire  question  of  homoeopathy,  and 
concede  almost  every  point  which  I  have  attempted  to 

14 


210  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

establish  j  not  in  regard  to  similia  similibus  curantur 
only,  but  also  triturations,  dilutions  and  dynamization. 

It  requires  no  evidence  from  my  hands  to  prove  that  all 
medicines  which  have  any  action  upon  the  human  system 
act  either  chemically,  mechanically  or  physically;  in  truth 
they  are  simply  physical  forces,  and  are  strong  for  good 
or  evil  in  direct  proportion  to  their  power  of  impressing 
themselves  upon  and  modifying  the  cell  action  of  the 
constituent  parts  of  the  body.  It  is  in  this  way  that 
they  modify  the  so-called  vital  force. 

It  is  conceded  that  this  law  relates  to  no  agent  which 
affects  the  organism  chemically,  mechanically  or  hygi- 
enically,  and  of  course,  no  sanitary  measures  can  be 
adopted  under  its  operations.  The  use  of  all  disinfect- 
ants^and  other  chemical  or  mechanical  means  for  de- 
stroying disease  germs  or  disease  producing  agents  of 
whatever  kind,  is  clearly  not  homoeopathic. 

It  certainly  would  be  a  piece  of  folly  to  attempt  to 
destroy  the  noxious  agents  germinating  in  a  cesspool, 
privy  vault,  foul  sewer,  or  a  contaminated  water  supply 
with  any  quantity  of  a  dynamized  drug ;  for  whatever 
may  be  the  modus  operandi  of  these  medicines  when 
taken  into  the  system,  they  certainly  are  nothing  but 
physical  agents  when  used  as  disinfectants,  and  act 
chemically,  mechanically  and  hygienically. 

If  a  dynamized  drug  selected  under  the  law  of  simi- 
lia is  of  no  force  external  to  the  body  in  destroying  disease 
germs,  why  expect  it  to  accomplish  more  by  administer- 


HOMCEOPATHY  AND  THE  GERM  THEORY.       211 

ing  it  internally,  after  the  germs  have  been  absorbed 
and  found  a  lodgment  in  the  fluids  and  solids  of  the 
body  ?  The  writer  further  says  that  "  the  law  relates  to 
the  action  of  no  agents  destroying  the  parasites  which  in- 
fest or  prey  upon  the  hwnan  organism,"  Now,  if  the 
germ  theory  of  disease  should  prove,  upon  further  in- 
vestigation, to  be  the  correct  one  in  regard  to  the  acute 
infectious  diseases,  it  would  place  our  brethren  of  the 
homoeopathic  school  under  embarrassing  circumstances, 
after  the  promulgation  of  this  fourth  proposition,  which 
the  writer  says  is  "  so  plain  it  cannot  be  disputed,"  be- 
cause the  establishment  of  this  theory  places  this  class 
of  diseases  among  the  parasitic,  and  consequently  re- 
moves them  from  the  domain  of  similiay  which  is  a 
proposition  so  plain  that  I  agree  with  him  when  he  says 
it  "  cannot  be  disputed." 

A  closer  examination  and  analysis  of  Dr.  Dake's 
propositions  narrows  the  domain  of  similia,  according 
to  his  own  view,  to  almost  nothing.  He  states  (2) 
that  "This  law  relates  to  no  affections  of  the  health  where 
the  cause  is  constantly  present  and  operative."  This  ex- 
cludes from  its  domain  all  hereditary  diseases  and  dia- 
theses, as  well  as  those  caused  by  climatic  influence  and 
occupation.  No.  3  removes  all  cases  which  would 
recover  by  the  unaided  efforts  of  nature,  or  the  vis  medi- 
catrix  naturoz.  No.  4  eliminates  all  cases  which  are 
incurable  because  of  such  lesions  as  cancer,  tubercle, 
destruction  of  organs  from  the  action  of  chemical  or  me- 


212  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

chanical  agents,  etc.  No.  5  removes  from  the  domain 
of  the  law  all  "  affections  of  health  where  vital  energy 
or  reactive  vital  power  is  exhausted."  The  discussion 
of  this  point  calls  to  mind  one  of  the  most  serious  objec- 
tions to  homoeopathy,  not  only  to  the  law  of  similars, 
but  to  triturations  and  dilutions.  Food,  drink  and 
stimulants  are  certainly  as  much  entitled  to  rank  as 
therapeutic  agents  as  medicinal  substances,  for  a  patient's 
life  may  depend  upon  the  timely  administration  of  these 
articles,  and  no  homoeopathist  will  claim  that  they  can 
be  dynamized  by  dilution  or  given  the  patient  in  accord- 
ance with  similia. 

The  restorative  or  tonic  plan  of  treatment  which  is 
so  popular  aud  necessary  to  success  in  the  treatment  of  a 
large  class  of  diseases  is  a  stranger  to  homoeopathy,  and 
this  school  cannot  avail  itself  of  its  advantages.  There 
may  be,  and  frequently  is,  a  deficiency  of  some  of  the  nor- 
mal elements  which  go  to  make  up  the  tissues  of  the  body. 
The  salts  of  iron,  potassa,  soda,  lime,  phosphorus,  sul- 
phur, the  albuminous  compounds  derived  from  nitro- 
genous food,  water  and  other  substances,  may  have  to  be 
furnished  in  liberal  quantities  and  introduced  into  the 
system  rapidly  ;  even  transfusion  of  blood  may  be  neces- 
sary, or  our  patient  perishes.  How  will  homoeopathy, 
with  its  attenuated  single  remedy,  under  the  law  of  sim- 
ilia similibus  curantur,  meet  this  emergency  ?  Manifestly, 

not  at  all. 

The  conclusion  of  this  matter  is  about  as  follows  : — 


FOOLS  AND   PHYSIC.  213 

The  law  of  similars  is  not  applicable  to  the  cure  of  dis- 
eases where  a  chemical,  mechanical,  or  physical  cause  is 
necessary  for  their  production  or  relief.  All  therapeutic 
agents  are  chemical,  mechanical  or  physical  forces.* 
Therefore,  the  law  of  similars  is  not  applicable  to  the 
cure  of  disease  by  the  use  of  therapeutic  agents. 

It  is  time  all  metaphysical  discussions  and  theoretical 
speculations  in  regard  to  laws  of  therapeutics  were  for- 
ever discarded.  This  is  an  age  in  search  of  facts  and 
not  fancies.  The  experiences  of  the  last  twenty-five 
centuries  have  convinced  us  that  there  is  no  law  of  thera- 
peutics which  can  be  universal,  and  there  can  be  no 
specific  dogmas  connected  with  this  subject  sufficiently 
broad  and  comprehensive  upon  which  to  found  a  system 
or  school  of  medicine. 

The  foundation  of  scientific  medicine  should  be  laid 
broad  and  deep,  sufficiently  so  to  enable  it  to  absorb 
everything  good,  no  matter  from  what  source  it  comes, 
and  reject  everything  bad  with  the  same  freedom. 

Homoeopathy,  as  taught  by  its  founders,  was  essentially 
a  narrow-gauged  affair,  as  all  purely  dogmatic  schools 
always  must  have  been.  The  progress  of  homoeopathy 
has  never  been  satisfactory  to  its  friends  in  any  country 
save  the  United  States.  In  this  country,  where  the 
utmost  freedom  abounds,  there  is  no  law  to  prevent  a  man 
from  being  a  fool  himself,  or  patronizing  one  in  any 
business  in  which  he  may  choose  to  engage. 
*  Preceding  chapter. 


214  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

"How  Can  we  Best  Advance  Homoeopathy ?"  was 

the  subject  of  an  address  delivered  before  the  American 

Institute  of  Homoeopathy,  at  Milwaukee,  June,  1880, 

from  which  we  insert  some  extracts: — 

'"'  It  cannot  be  denied  that  homoeopathy  has  not  ad- 
vanced, and  is  not  advancing  as  rapidly  as  we  could 
desire,  nor  as  rapidly  as  we  once  had  just  and  reasonable 
grounds  for  expecting  it  to  advance.  In  the  United 
States,  where  it  has  taken  the  firmest  root,  and  where  its 
spreading  branches  the  most  widely  overshadow  the  land 
with  healing  in  their  leaves,  the  old  school  is  yet  tri- 
umphant in  point  of  numbers;  and  to  this  day  the  rules 
of  medical  trades-unionism,  euphemistically  called  'pro- 
fessional etiquette/  are  brought  to  bear  upon  us  by  our 
opponents.  In  Great  Britain  we  have  but  two  hundred 
and  seventy-five  avowed  homoeopathic  physicians,  and 
this  number  includes  not  a  few  who  have  not  the  slight- 
est claims  to  this  honorable  title ;  and  while  there  are 
many  colleges  and  universities  empowered  by  the  State 
to  grant  degrees  in  medicine,  we  have  not  one  legally 
recognized  school  of  homoeopathy.  On  the  Continent 
matters  are  in  the  same  unsatisfactory  condition.  Ex- 
cept in  the  United  States,  and  for  the  last  few  years  in 
Great  Britain,  there  seems  to  be  everywhere  stagnation, 
if  not   retrogression.     It   ought   to   be   far  otherwise. 

•  TT 

More  than  forty  years  have  elapsed  since  Hahnemann 
penned  the  fifth  edition  of  his  Organon ;  more  than 
eighty  years  since  he  first  announced  the  law  of  Similia, 
and  yet  how  little  fruit  has  his  life  work  borne  in  com- 
parison with  what  should  have  been.  Why  is  this? 
To  what  causes  are  we  to  attribute  the  fact  that  the  pro- 
fession and  the  public  have  not  more  universally  accepted 
homoeopathy. 

"  There  are  those  nominally  among  us  who  have  a 
stereotyped  answer  to  this  question.  Hahnemann,  they 
say,  was  too  dogmatic,  too  uncompromising,  too  vision- 
ary ;  and  as  a  panacea  for  all  the  unbelief  which  now 


LIBERAL   HOMOEOPATHY.  215 

pervades  the  allopathic  mind,  the}7  recommend  that  we 
should  give  up  what  they  call  our  'sectarian  attitude;' 
that  we  should  drop  and  disavow  the  name  of  homoeo- 
pathy ;  that  we  should  repudiate  as  untenable  that  which 
they  term  the  extravagances  of  Hahnemann,  such  as  his 
doctrine  of  chronic  diseases,  etc.,  and  finally  that  we 
should  claim  for  similia  similibus  curantur,  not  the  posi- 
tion of  a  universal  law,  but  only  that  of  a  very  good 
and  useful  rule  of  practice  to  which  there  may  be  many 
exceptions. 

"  Such  has  been  the  effect  of  our  wavering  upon  the 
minds  of  our  allopathic  brethren  ;  what  effect  has  it  had 
on  ourselves  ?  Ever  since  that  fatal  error  was  committed 
by  one  whose  memory  we  nevertheless  hold  in  honor,  of 
proclaiming  "  absolute  liberty  in  medical  opinion  and 
action,"  a  change  for  the  worse  has  taken  place  in  our 
own  ranks.  Ever  since  that  time  the  name  of  Carroll 
Dunham  has  been  held  to  sanction  every  kind  of  empiri- 
cism ;  forgetting  that  he  himself  in  his  teaching  and 
practice  was  a  true  Hahnemannian,  men  have  eagerly 
caught  at  his  well  intentioned,  though  mistaken,  perhaps 
misunderstood,  words,  and  ever  banded  themselves  to- 
gether to  overthrow  those  that  remained  true  to  the 
teachings  of  the  Master.  I  need  not  recount  the  various 
phases  of  the  struggle,  they  are  all  well  known  to  you." 

Carroll  Dunham's  address  was  only  the  exciting  cause 
of  the  schism  which  took  place  in  the  ranks  of  homoeo- 
pathy. It  had  been  gathering  form  for  a  long  time,  and 
must  have  come  sooner  or  later ;  in  fact,  it  could  not 
have  been  delayed  much  longer.  There  are  now  two 
wings  to  the  school,  the  liberals  and  the  straight  jackets. 
A  house  cannot  stand  which  is  divided  against  itself. 
The  liberals  will  necessarily  become  eclectics  and  the 
straight-jackets  will  return  to  Hahnemannism,  pure  and 


216  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

unadulterated.     Preliminary  steps   to   accomplish  this 
step  have  already  been  taken. 

During  the  meeting  of  the  American  Institute  of 
Homoeopathy,  at  Milwaukee,  June,  1880,  The  Interna- 
tional Hahnemannian  Association  was  formed,  which 
adopted  the  following  platform  of  principles : — 

"  Whereas,  We  believe  the  Organon  of  the  healing 
art  as  promulgated  by  Samuel  Hahnemann  to  be  the 
only  reliable  guide  in  therapeutics ;  and 

"  Whereas ,  This  clearly  teaches  that  homoeopathy 
consists  in  the  law  of  similars,  the  totality  of  the  symp- 
toms, the  single  remedy,  the  minimum  dose  of  the 
dynamized  drug,  and  these  not  singly  but  collectively ; 
and 

"  Whereas,  Numbers  of  professed  homoeopathists  not 
only  violate  these  tenets,  but  largely  repudiate  them ; 
and 

"  Whereas,  An  effort  has  been  made  on  the  part  of 
such  physicians  to  unite  the  homoeopathic  with  the  allo- 
pathic school ;  therefore 

"Resolved,  That  the  time  has  fully  come  when  legiti- 
mate Hahnemannian  homoeopathists  should  publicly 
disavow  all  such  innovations ; 

"Resolved,  That  the  mixture  or  alternating  of  two 
or  more  medicines  is  regarded  as  non-homceopathic; 

"Resolved,  That  in  non-surgical  cases  we  disapprove 
of  medicated  topical  applications  and  mechanical  appli- 
ances as  being  also  non-homceopathic  ; 

"Resolved,  That  as  '  the  best  dose  of  medicine  is  ever 
the  smallest/  we  cannot  recognize  as  being  homoeopathic 
such  treatment  as  suppresses  symptoms  by  the  toxic 
action  of  the  drug; 

" Resolved y  That  we  have  no  sympathy  in  common 
with  those  physicians  who  would  engraft  on  honioeo- 


INTERNATIONAL    ASSOCIATION.  217 

pathy  the  crude  ideas  and  doses  of  allopathy  or  eclecti- 
cism, and  we  do  not  hold  ourselves  responsible  for  their 
1  fatal  errors'  in  theory  and  failures  in  practice; 

"Resolved,  That  as  some  self-styled  homceopathists 
have  taken  occasion  to  traduce  Hahnemann  as  a  '  fanatic/ 
as  'dishonest'  and  'visionary/  and  his  teaching  as  'not 
being  the  standard  of  homoeopathy  of  to-day/  that  we 
regard  all  such  as  recreant  to  the  best  interests  of 
homoeopathy; 

"Resolved,  That  for  the  purpose  of  promoting  these 
sentiments,  and  for  our  own  mutual  improvement,  we 
organize  ourselves  into  an  International  Hahnemaunian 
Association,  and  adopt  a  constitution  and  by-laws. 

The  formation  of  this  Association  and  the  adoption  of 
this  platform  of  principles  is  a  return  to  the  pure,  in- 
flexible dogmatic  homoeopathy  of  Hahnemann. 

The  adoption  of  resolutions  seems  to  be  a  favorite 
amusement  with  our  homoeopathic  brethren.  Each 
yearly  gathering  favors  us  with  the  usual  supply,  which 
are  looked  for  and  read  with  interest,  in  order  to  enable 
us  to  decide  what  homoeopathy  is  going  to  be  for  the 
ensuing  year. 

This  Association  resolves  to  adopt  the  principles  pro- 
mulgated by  Samuel  Hahnemann  in  the  Organon  of  the 
healing  art  as  the  only  trustworthy  guide  to  therapeutics. 
It  resolves  in  favor  of  the  law  of  similars,  the  totality 
of  symptoms,  the  single  remedy  and  the  minimum  dose 
of  the  dynamized  drug;  against  mixing  or  alternating 
medicines,  local  applications  in  non-surgical  cases,  and 
further,  that  any  violation  of  these  tenets  is  non-homoeo- 
pathic, and  that  the  time  has  arrived  for  pure  Hahne- 


218  MEDICAL   HERESIES. 

mannians  to  publicly  disavow  all  connection  with  such 
innovations.  This  kind  of  homoeopathy  will  not  stand 
the  test  of  recent  advances  in  science. 


INDEX. 


PAGE 

Absurdity  of  dilutions  demonstrated 150 

./Esculapius 26 

biography  of;  sons  of ;  connection  with  the  expe-. 

dition  of  the  Argonauts 27 

his  deification 27 

his  method  of  curing  diseases  ;  his  death 27 

^Etius... 59 

After-pains  caused  by  deranged  vital  force 128 

Agathinus 42 

Ages  in  medicine 17 

Aggravations,  homoeopathic 106 

Agrippa,  Cornelius 63 

Ainspach : 83 

Albucasis 57 

Alcohol 57 

Alexander  of  Tralles 59 

Alexandria,  school  of 35 

Alhakem  the  II . 56 

Allen's  encvclopedia  of  pure  materia  medica 143 

Allopath  ...:. 131 

Almamun  Caliph « 55 

Almansur  Caliph ; 55 

American  Homoeopathist ;  discussion  upon  the  internal  and 
avoidable  obstacles  to  homoeopathy,  by  a  homoeopathist ; 

potencies;  materia  medica  and  pathology 175-179 

American  Institute  of  Homoeopathy 214 

Amida 59 

Amulets 27,48 

Anatomy  of  Galen  48 

failure  of  the  empirics  in  the  study  of. 88 

practical,  at  Alexandria 36 

evolution  of. 74 

revival  of,  by  Mondini 76 

Ancient  dogmatism 90 

Anger  of  the  gods  in  producing  disease 23 

Anima,  or  soul 84,  87 

Antidotes 93 

Antipath  , ; 131 

Antipyretic  remedies  ;  argument  against  dynamic  force 155 

Apis 23 

Apocryphal  books 35 

Apollo 23,26,27 

219 


220  INDEX. 

PAGE 

Arabia 53 

Arabian  authors 56 

Arabs  opposed  to  dissections 75 

Archeological  evidences  of  civilization  in  America  in  prehis- 
toric times 20 

Archigenes 42 

Argonauts 27 

Aristotle 35,43,  92 

Asclepiadas,  the 28,30,  51 

Asclepiades,  the  founder  of  the  methodic  school,  doctrines 

of. 39,  74 

Astrology 60 

Atheneus  of  Attaleia 41 

Athens,  school  at,  destroyed 53,  92 

Attenuations  in  pathology 102 

Avicenna 56,  93 

Baghdad 55 

Basle 65 

Bellini,  Lawrence 71 

Black  death  in  Asia  and  Europe  during  the  fourteenth  century     19 

Bodies  of  criminals  dissected 36 

Boerhaave,  Hermann,  system  of 85 

Boericke  and  Tafel 149 

Bokharra 56 

Bologna 61 

Borelli,  Giovanni  Alphonso 71 

Brown,  John,  founder  of  the  Brunonian   system  ;    biography 
of;  his  opinions  ;  death 88,  96 

Cabalistic  medicine,  baneful  influence  of- 63 

Caliph  Almamun 55 

Caliph  Almansur 55 

Cannibalism 74 

Canon,  the 57 

Cardan,  Jerome 63 

Carpi,  Beringer  De 77 

Casserius,  Julius 81 

Causes  of  disease  immaterial  and  dynamic 102 

Celsus  41 

Challenge  to  homoeopathy 156 

Charlemagne 60 

Charles  1 81 

Chemical  school  of  medicine 63 

Chemistry 68 

Chiron,  the  Centaur 26 

Christian  church,  influence  of  in  retarding  the  progress  of 

medicine 51 

opposed  to  human  dissections 76 

Christianity  and  the  Roman  empire 53 

Chrysaloras,  Emanuel 62 


INDEX.  221 

PAGE 

Cicero 39 

Circulation  of  blood 81 

Clinical  review,  quotations  from 186 

Clysters 25 

Coction 35,  47 

College  of  Physicians 81 

Constantine,  the  African 61 

Contrarii  contrariis,  Galen's  Law 199 

Cordova,  Spain  56 

Cornelius  Agrippa 63 

Correlation  and  conservation  of  forces 125 

Cowardice  of  Galen 49 

Crisis , 35 

Crotonia 28 

Cullen,  William,  his  system  of  medicine 86 

Demonology  among  the  Egyptians 24 

among  the  eclectic  conciliators 71 

Descartes 84 

Dilutionists,  high  and  low 185 

Dilutions 101,  105 

manner  of  preparing 107 

strength  of ; 109 

Dioscorides'  works  on  materia  medica 92 

Diphtheria  converted  into  scarlatina  by  kali  chlor.,  a  fool's 

theory 187 

Disease  a  nonentity,  according  to  Hahnemann 104 

Diseases  cured  by  Divine  interposition 51 

attributed  to  the  anger  of  the  gods  by  the  ancient 

Egyptians 23 

cured  by  prayers  and  incantations,  etc.,  by  the  early 

Christians 52 

Disordered  condition  of  vital  force 107 

Dissections  of  human  body  legalized  for  the  first  time  in  the 

history  of  the  world 36,  61 

forbidden  by  the  Jews,  the  Romans,  the  Greeks, 

Arabians  and  early  Christians 76 

Distillation  introduced  by  the  Arabians 57 

Divisibility  of  metals 146 

Dogmatic  age  in  medicine 17 

school  of  medicine 35,  96 

homoeopathy 172 

Dogmatism  revised  by  Galen 48 

Domain  of  similia,  by  a  homoeopath 206 

Draco 35 

Drugs  as  physical  or  dynamical  agents 158 

Drug-disease « 137 

Dynamic  force  developed  by  shaking 106 

power  of  drugs  tested  by  clinical  thermometer 155 

force  refuted 147 


222  INDEX. 

PAGE 

Eastern  empire,  disintegration  of 62 

Eben  Baithar's  materia  medica 93 

Ecclesiastics 58,  60 

Eclectic  conciliators 69 

school  of  medicine 42,  96 

homceopathists 172 

Ecolampadius 64 

Edessa 54 

Edinburg  University 87 

Egyptian  mysteries 24 

mythology 23 

Embalming  the  dead  by  the  ancient  Egyptians 75 

Empiric  school  of  medicine 37,  74 

or  dogmatic  age  in  medicine 17 

Episynthetic  or  eclectic  school  of  medicine 42 

Erasistratus 36 

Esmion 23 

Eustachius 77 

Evil  spirits 22 

Evolution  of  medicine 18 

of  anatomy 73 

Expectant  school  of  medicine 83 

Fabricius 77,  81 

Faith  doctors 76 

Fallacies  of  drug-provings 183 

Faust 62 

Folkstone 80 

Food,  drink  and  stimulants,  as  medicines 212 

Force  and  matter 148 

produced  by  agitation 149,  107 

Forces  of  nature  in  diseases 124 

Gaius 43 

Galen,  Claudius,  history  of. 43 

opportunities  for  distinction 44 

writings  and  opinions  of 45 

his  anatomy 47 

his  infallibility 48 

his  cowardice 49 

Galenites 48 

Generation,  works  on,  by  Harvey 81 

Germ  theory  of  infectious  diseases 130 

theory  of  diseases,  and  its  relations  to  homoeopathy 210 

Geynes,  Doctor 48 

G lasgow  University 86 

Golden  Fleece 27 

Greek  belief  in  regard  to  the  dead 75 

Greek  colonies  from  Egypt 25 

Gutenburg,  John 62 

Gymnosophists 69 


INDEX.  223 

PAGE 

Hahnemann,  Samuel,  biography  of. 98 

his  chemical  law  a  fallacy 146 

discovery  of  the  law  of  similars  by 99 

writings  of,  Organon  and  other  works 99 

his  theory  of  chronic  diseases 129 

local  remedies  denounced  by 121 

his  transcendental  views  upon  pathology 102 

causes  of  disease  immaterial 103 

disease  a  nonentity 104 

his  views  upon  olfaction 110 

Hahnemannians,  pure 217 

Hali  Abbas 56 

Halle,  University  of 84 

Hallers  physiology 86 

Harvey,  William 80 

Helmont,  Van 84 

Hercules 26,31 

Herophilus 36 

High  potencies,  cure  of  offensive  foot-sweat  by 108 

High  potencies  tested 145 

Hippocrates,  genealogy  of 31 

opinions  and  writings  of. 33 

theory  of  disease 34 

Hippocratic  countenance 34 

period 17 

History  of  medicine  really  begins 17 

Hoffman,  Frederick,  his  system 85,  96 

Homoeopath,  allopath- and  antipath 131 

Homoeopathic  aggravation 100 

honor  and  honesty 193 

law  of  cure 105 

practice  not  based  upon  pathology,  but  upon  a 

totality  of  symptoms 133 

times,  a  discussion  of  homoeopathy  by  a  homceo- 

pathist 188 

Homoeopathy  as  taught  by  Hahnemann 97 

divisions  in 98 

a  huge  lie 195 

in  the  old  world 214 

quinine  and  intermittents  in 186 

Horner 27 

Horus 23 

Hospital,  first  public,  in  the  world 55 

Homoeopathic,  on  Ward's  Island 193 

Hufeland7s  Journal 101 

Humoral  pathology 85,  86 

Hunter,  William 86 

Ignorance  and  superstition  of  early  Christians 51 

Illinois  Homoeopathic  Medical  Association  ;  ventilation  of  the 
principles  of  the  school  by  its  own  members  ;    angry  dis- 


224  INDEX. 

PAGE 

cussion ;  refusal  to   indorse   its  own   fundamental   princi- 
ples   160-167 

Improvements  in  physiology 83 

Inconsistencies  between   homoeopathic  teachings  and  prac- 
tice  185,  192 

Infallibility  of  Galen 48 

Infectious  diseases  combined  in  same  patient 203 

International  Hahnemannian  Association 216 

Jena 83 

Jews  opposed  to  practical  anatomy 75 

Julian,  Emperor 59 

Justinian,  reign  of. 53 

Kepler...... 72 

Key-notes  in  homoeopathy 181 

Kidd's  Laws  of  Therapeutics,  quotations  from 198,  199 

Knowledge  of  anatomy  by  the  ancients 73 

Law  of  similars 132 

a  Divine  revelation  to  Hahnemann 136 

modus  operandi  by  which  diseases  are  cured 

by  it 137 

Liberal  homoeopathists 215 

Local  remedies  denounced  by  Hahnemann 121 

Lucius  Verus 49 

Ludlam,  Prof.,   after-treatment  of  ovariotomy,  quinine  and 

morphine,  by 190 

antipathy  and  homoeopathy  of. 192 

Machoan,  son  of  iEseulapius 27 

Marcus  Artorius 40 

Aurelius 49 

Marsh,  Professor,  investigations  in  archaeology 20 

Materia  medica  of  the  ancients 91 

Mathematical  school  of  medicine 71 

demonstration  of  the  folly  of  dilutions 149 

Medical  investigator 161,  185 

counsellor 128 

Advance,  quotations  from 185,  186,  188 

Medical  Press  and  Circular 195 

Medicinal  potency 137 

Medicine  and  philosophy 90 

Medicines  as  chemical  and  mechanical  agents 206,  213 

as  forces 153 

absorbed  into  circulation 154 

Mental  impressions 53 

Meteorology  of  diseases 33 

Methodic  school 39,  74,  96 

Miasms 129 

syphilis,  sycosis  and  psora 122 


INDEX.  225 


PAGE 

Microscopical  and  chemical  examinations  of  high  potencies...  145 

Milwaukee  Academy 172 

Modus  operandi  of  medicines 153 

Mondini 61,  76 

Monks,  schools  established  by 60 

Moors 61 

Monte  Cassino,  school  at 60 

Myrepsus 95 

Mythological  age  in  medicine , 17 

Natural  diseases  essentially  dissimilar 204 

Nestorius  and  the  Nestorians 54 

New  England  Medical  Gazette 146 

Newton 72 

New  York  Homoeopathic  Medical  Society :  difference  of 
opinion  ;  resolutions  of  1878,  '79  and  '80  ;  efforts  to  harmon- 
ize an  unharmonious  convention  ;  resolutions  adopted  by  a 

two-thirds  majority 166-172 

New  York  Medical  Gazette  ;  homoeopathic  chicanery  in  the 

management  of  the  hospital  upon  Sard's  Island 193 

Nostrums  in  ancient  Greece 30 

Olfaction,  medicine  by 110 

Opinions  of  Galen 47 

Hippocrates 32 

Organon 99 

Oribasius 59 

Origin  of  medicine,  belief  in  the  gods 18,  23 

Osiris 23 

Ovariotomy,  homoeopathic  after-treatment  in 190 

Padua 79,  81 

Pagan  philosophers,  expulsion  from  Athens 53 

Paisley,  Doctor 86 

Paracelsus 63 

Paten,  Guy 68 

Pathology... 179 

Paulus  JEgineta 59 

Pelops 44 

Pergamus 43 

Physician,  when  first  used 60 

Physiology,  improvements  in,  during  17th  and  18th  centuries  83 

Plagues  and  pestilences 19 

Plato..... 35 

Pneumatic  school  or  sect 41 

Podalirius,  son  of  iEsculapius 26,  27 

Polybus 35 

Potencies 178 

high,  tested,  microscopically  and  chemically 145 

Potency,  medicinal 137 

Potentiating 107 

15 


J26  INDEX. 

PAGE 

Practical  anatomy  revived  by  Mondini 61 

Praxagoras 35 

Prayer,  diseases  cured  by 61 

Prehistoric  nations,  cannibalism  and  human  sacrifices 74 

man 19 

Priesthood 51 

Principles  of  dogmatic  school 35 

empiric  school 38 

methodic  school 40 

Printing  invented 62 

Progress  of  medicine  in  Western  Europe 58 

of  medicine  in  13th,  14th  and  15th  centuries 61 

of  surgery 73 

Provings 100,  139,  182 

of  calcarea 141 

Psora 123,  130 

Pyrrho ; 37 

Pythagoras  and  his  school ." 28 

Rapou,  M.,  his  opinions  of  the  doctrines  of  homoeopathy 159 

Rational  age  in  medicine 18 

Religious  belief  of  the  ancients  opposed  to  dissection  of  the 

human  body 75 

Report  of  Trustees  of  the  Ohio  Blind  Asylum 188 

homoeopathic  drug-bill  in  connection  therewith 189 

Restorative  plan  of  treatment 212 

Revival  of  practical  anatomy 76 

Rhazes 56,  93 

Riolan,  John 68 

Roman  empire 53 

destruction  of 58 

Roman  law  forbidding  dissections 76 

Rosenkrenz,  Father 69 

Rosicrucians 69 

Rosy  Cross 69 

Rums  the  Ephesian 41,  76 

Sacramento  Hospital,  drugs  and  homoeopaths 190 

Salerno,  school  at 60 

Satyrus 43 

Sennertus,  Daniel 69 

Serapis 23 

Servetus,  Michael 79 

history  and  death  of. 80 

Sherman's  test  of  the  30th  dilution 172 

final  report  thereon 175,  178 

Similar  and  dissimilar  diseases  united  in  same  patient 202 

Similia  similibus  curantur 100,  101,  105,  107,  198-212 

a  piece  of  folly 148 

Single  remedy  and  interval  between  doses  112-118 


INDEX.  227 

PAGE 

Soranus 41 

Spain,  schools  of 56  61 

Specific  school 159 

Spirit-like  pathology 102 

dynamic  vital  force 144 

Spirits,  vital,  animal  and  natural 46 

Stahl,  George  Ernest 83 

Stephanus  of  Byzantium 40 

Sugar  introduced  by  the  Arabians 57 

Sulphur,  remarkable  views  of  Hahnemann  upon 118 

Surgeon-general's  office 49 

Sylvius 77 

Symptoms,  totality  of  being  removed  cancels  the  internal  dis- 
ease   135 

Temperature  of  body,  effect  of  drugs  upon 156 

Themison 40 

Theophrastus  .*. 35?  92 

works  of 92 

Theosophy 60 

Theriac 94 

Thessalus 35 

Thessalus  Trallianus 41 

Thoth 23 

Tinctures  introduced  by  the  Arabians 57 

Tonic  treatment 112 

Totality  of  symptoms 104,  133,  135,  157,  200 

removed,  the  disease  will  be  canceled...  119 

Transcendental  pathology 102 

Triturations 109 

mode  of  preparing 109 

strength  of. 110 

Troy,  siege  of 27 

Unity  of  force 125 

University  of  Cordova 56 

Venesection,  how  learned 25 

Vesalius,  Andrew,   his  biography,   travels,   misfortunes  and 

death 77-79 

Vis  medicatrix  naturas 87 

denounced  by  Hahnemann 119 

Vital  force  in  disease 125 

War  of  the  Rebellion,  profession  in 49 

Ward's  Island  Homoeopathic  Hospital 193 

Wesselhceft,  C,  on  the  divisibility  of  metals 146 

Western  Academy  of  Medicine 186 

Witchcraft 71 


228  INDEX. 

PAGE 

Writings  of  the  empirics 37 

Galen 45-47 

Hippocrates 31 

Paracelsus 67 

Hahnemann 99 

Yellow  fever  in  the  South  ;  noble  conduct  of  the  profession...     50 

Zante 79 

Zurich 63 


SELECT  LIST  OF  BOOKS 

FROM  THE  CATALOGUE  OF 

MR.  PRESLEY  BLAKISTON, 

1012  Walnut  Street,  Philadelphia, 

FOR  GENERAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  READERS. 

fggg* Any  of  the  following  books  will  be  sent,  postpaid,  upon  re- 
ceipt of  the  price,  or  they  will  be  found  in  the  stock  of  most  book- 
sellers throughout  the  United  States  and  Canada. 

HEALTH  AND  HEALTHY  HOMES.  A  Guide  to  Personal 
and  Domestic  Hygiene.  By  George  Wilson,  m.a.,  m.d.,  Medical  Officer 
of  Health.  Edited  by  Jos.  G.  Richardson,  Professor  of  Hygiene  at 
the  University  of  Pennsylvania.    12mo.    Cloth.    314  pp.    Price  $1.50. 

CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Exercise,  Recreation  and 
Training,  187 

Home  and  Its  Surround- 
ings, Drainage,  Warm- 
ing, etc.,  221 

Infectious  Diseases  and 
their  Prevention,  269 

NOTICES   OF  THE  PRESS. 

"  A  most  useful  and  in  every  way  acceptable  book  is  that  published  by 
Presley  Blakiston,  of  Philadelphia,  entitled  '  Health  and  Healthy  Homes  ; 
a  G-uide  to  Domestic  Hygiene,  by  George  Wilson,  m.a.,  m.d.,  with  Notes 
and  Additions  by  J.  G.  Richardson,  m.d.'  We  can  speak  of  the  work  of 
Dr.  Wilson  as  one  of  great  merit  and  utility.  It  is  just  such  a  work,  in  fact, 
as  one  would  have  expected  from  the  author  of  the  'Handbook  of  Hygiene 
and  Sanitary  Science,'  which  has  reached  its  fourth  edition.  Dr.  Wilson 
is  a  Medical  Officer  of  Health.  He  speaks,  therefore,  as  a  medical  man 
of  large  and  special  experience,  and  the  style  and  structure  of  the  book 
now  before  us  reveal  the  accomplished  scholar,  as  well  as  the  literary 
adept.  In  the  introductory  chapter,  in  which  Addison's  '  Vision  of  Mirza' 
is  turned  to  excellent  account,  the  author,  by  a  skillful  appeal  to  vital  sta- 
tistics, shows  how  vast  is  the  amount  of  preventable  disease  and  suffering. 
Ha7ing  had  a  good  foundation,  and  having  proved  that  we  are,  much  more 
than  we  believe  we  are,  the  custodians  of  our  own  lives  and  of  our  own 
health,  he  proceeds  in  a  series  of  chapters  to  explain  the  structure  of  the 
human  body  and  the  physiology  and  functions  of  various  organs,  supplying 
all  the  information  which  is  necessary  to  enable  us  to  understand  those 
intricate  processes  which  constitute  the  'miracle  of  life.'"—  New  York 
Herald. 

1 


OHAP. 

PAGE. 

CHAP, 

I.  Introductory. 

17 

VI. 

11.  The  Human  Body, 

33 

III.  Causes  of  Disease. 

66 

VII. 

IV.  Food  and  Diet, 

119 

V.  Cleanliness    and 

Cloth- 

iug, 

169 

VIII. 

2  Presley  Blakistorix 


HYGIENE  AND  SANITARY  SCIENCE.  A  Complete  Hand- 
book, 4th  revised  edition.  Containing  chapters  on  Public  Health, 
Food,  Air,  Ventilation  and  Warming,  Water,  Water  Analysis,  Dwell- 
ings, Hospitals.  Removal,  Purification,  Utilization  of  Sewage  and  Ef- 
fects on  PublicHealth,  Drainage.  Epidemics,  Duties  of  Medical  Officers 
of  Health,  etc.  By  Geo.  Wilson,  M. a.,  m.d.  12mo.  Cloth.  Price  $2.75. 
"  A  sound  book,  by  a  very  competent  writer." — London  Lancet. 

EYESIGHT,  GOOD  AND  BAD.  The  Preservation  ofVision. 
By  Robert  Brudenel  Carter,  m.d.,  f.r.c.s.  With  many  explanatory 
illustrations.    12mo.    Cloth.    Price  $1.50. 

PREFACE. 

A  large  portion  of  the  time  of  every  ophthalmic  surgeon  is  occupied,  day 
after  day,  In  repeating  to  successive  patients  precepts  and  injunctions 
which  ought  to  be  universally  known  and  understood.  The  following 
pages  contain  an  endeavor  to  make  these  precepts  and  injunctions,  and 
the  reasons  for  them,  plainly  intelligible  to  those  who  are  most  concerned  in 
their  observance. 

"  The  publications  for  popular  use,  as  well  as  those  for  professional  medi- 
cal men  and  surgeons,  which  Mr.  Presley  Blakiston  issues  from  his  new 
establishment,  1012  Walnut  street,  have  already  won  him  distinction  in  his 
line.  One  of  the  latest  is  his  edition  of  Professor  Robert  Brudenel  Carter's 
excellent  volume  called  "  Eyesight,  Good  and  Bad  ;  a  Treatise  on  the  Ex- 
ercise and  Preservation  ofVision."  It  makes  a  book  of  270  pages,  distrib- 
uted through  which  are  many  illustrations.  The  nature  of  that  most 
delicate  organ,  the  eye,  on  which  so  much  of  the  happiness  of  life  depends, 
is  described,  along  with  the  weaknesses  it  may  inherit,  the  dangers  it  may 
be  exposed  to  and  the  diseases  to  which  it  is  liable  as  time  advances. 
Most  excellent  advice  for  preserving  it  when  healthy  and  treating  it 
when  it  is  impaired  is  given  by  the  distinguished  author,  along  with  direc- 
tions concerning  the  proper  glasses  that  may  be  needed.  The  various 
phenomena  of  color,  as  they  affect  the  eyes  and  the  vision,  are  described 
in  a  way  that  will  interest  all  readers,  and  the  remarks  relative  to  the 
treatment  of  the  eyes  of  children  will  be  found  most  valuable  to  parents, 
who  often  find  fault  with  little  ones  and  their  vision,  when  they  themselves 
are  really  at  fault  for  neglecting  the  eyes  of  the  little  ones."— Philadelphia 
Bulletin. 

WHAT  TO  DO  FIRST  in  A  ccidents  and  Poisoning.     By  Charles 
W.  Dulles,  m.d.    Illustrated.    16mo.    Cloth.     Price  50  cents. 

PREFACE. 

Whoever  has  seen  how  invaluable,  in  the  presence  of  an  accident,  is  the 
man  or  woman  with  a  cool  head,  a  steady  hand,  and  some  knowledge  of 
what  is  best  to  be  done,  will  not  fail  to  appreciate  the  desirability  of  possess- 
ing these  qualifications.  To  have  them  in  an  emergency  one  must  acquire 
them  before  it  arises,  and  it  is  with  the  hope  of  aiding  any  who  wish  to 
prepare  themselves  for  such  demands  upon  their  own  resources  that  the 
following  suggestions  have  been  put  together. 

ON  HEADACHES.      Their  Causes  and  Cure.     By    Henry  G. 
Wright,  m.d.    Ninth  thousand.    16mo.    Cloth.    Price  50  cents. 

ON  DEAFNESS,  GIDDINESS  and  Noises  in  the  Head.     By 
Ed.  Woakes,  m.d.    Illustrated.    2d  edition,    I2mq.    Qloth.t Price  $2.50. 


Select  List  of  Books. 


THE  MANAGEMENT  OF  CHILDREN  in  Health  and 
Disease.  By  Mrs.  Amie  M.  Hale,  m.d.  A  book  for  mothers.  12mo. 
Cloth.    Price  50  cents. 

WHAT  THE  LEADING  DAILY  PAPER  OP  PHILADELPHIA  SAYS  OP  IT. 

"No  better  book  than  this,  on  the  management  of  children,  is  to  be  had 
in  such  a  small  compass  and  convenient  form.  The  chapters  on  'Food  and 
Sleep,'  'How  shall  Children  be  Dressed,'  on  'Infant  Digestion  and  Diet,' 
are  all  valuable.  Those  on  indigestion,  especially,  will  give  some  new 
ideas  to  mothers  whe  are  accustomed  to  nurse  their  children  whenever 
they  cry,  thus  often  giving  them  still  more  to  cry  about,  in  the  way  of  over- 
loaded stomachs.  One  subject,  in  particular,  should  be  studied,  as  an  arti- 
cle of  religious  faith,  by  all  delicate  mothers  who  have  given  their  children 
weak  lungs  and  tender  throats  to  go  through  life  with,  or  when  babies  get 
their  consumptive  tendencies  from  the  father's  side.  The  ounce  of  precau- 
tion in  childhood  goes  further  than  many  pounds  of  medicine  or  years  of 
care  thereafter.  All  scrofulous  children,  whether  showing  symptoms  of 
lung  troubles  or  other,  should  be  taken  in  hand  at  once,  and  what  is  called 
a  prophylactic  treatment  applied.  In  other  words,  give  what  food  or 
medicines  are  needed  to  overcome  these  tendencies;  do  not  wait  until 
these  break  out,  in  after  years,  into  decided  symptoms.  Children  can  learn 
to  take  cod-liver  oil— if  not  to  cry  for  it,  at  least  to  like  it— and  by  taking 
all  these  agents,  milk  and  the  strengthening  oils,  that  supply  what  the 
parents  have  not  given  by  way  of  outfit,  tone  and  health  to  th^  system, 
many  a  weak  and  apparently  fore-doomed  child  has  outgrown  it?  dreadful 
inheritance  and  lived  to  a  healthy  old  age.  Begin  with  the  children.  For 
other  and  the  sudden  diseases  of  childhood,  Dr.  Hale's  book  gives  wise  and 
encouraging  advice.  Altogether,  it  is  a  book  which  ought  to  be  put  into 
every  baby  basket,  even  if  some  lace-trimmed  finery  is  left  out,  and  should 
certainly  stand  on  every  nursery  bureau."—  The  Philadelphia  Ledger. 

BIBLE  HYGIENE  ;  or.  Health  Hints.  By  a  Physician.  This 
book  has  been  written,  first,  to  impart  in  a  popular  and  condensed  form 
the  elements  of  hygiene.  Second,  to  show  how  varied  and  important 
are  the  Health  Hints  contained  in  the  Bible,  and  third,  to  prove  that 
the  secondary  trendings  of  modern  philosophy  run  in  a  parallel  direction 
with  the  primary  light  of  the  Bible.    12mo.    Cloth.    Price  $1.25. 

NOTICES    OP  THE  PRESS. 

"  The  anonymous  English  author  of  this  volume  has  written  a  decidedly 
readable  and  wholesome  book.  Its  style  is  so  pleasant  that  it  may  be  read 
with  profit  by  those  not  specially  familiar  with  Bible  interpretation,  or  with 
the  '  regimen  of  health,'  as  Bacon  called  it."— Philadelphia  Press. 

"The  scientific  treatment  of  the  subject  is  quite  abreast  of  the  present 
day,  and  is  so  clear  and  free  from  unnecessary  technicalities  that  readers 
of  all  classes  may  peruse  it  with  satisfaction  and  advantage."—  Edinburgh 
Medical  Journal. 

BRIGHT'S  DISEASE.  How  Persons  Affected  with  this  Disease 
Ought  to  Live.    By  J.  F.  Edwards,  m.d.    32mo,  96  pages.    Cloth.    Price 

50  cents. 
The  author  gives,  in  a  readable  manner,  those  instructions  in  relation 
to  hygiene,  clothing,  eating,  bathing,  etc.,  etc.,  which,  when  carried  out, 
will  prolong  the  life  of  those  suffering  from  this  disease,  and  a  neglect  of 
which  costs  annunlly  many  lives. 


Presley  Blakistoiis 


THE  AMERICAN  HEALTH  PRIMERS.     Edited  by  W.  W. 
Keen,  m.p.     Bound  in  Cloth.    Price  50  cents  each. 

The  twelve  volumes,  in  Handsome  Cloth  Box,  $6.00. 
I.  Hearing  ami  How  to  Keep  It.  With  illustrations.  By 
Chas.  H.  Burnett,  m.d.,  of  Philadelphia,  Aurist  to  the  Presby- 
terian Hospital,  etc. 
II.  Long:  Life,  and  How  to  Reach  It.  By  J.  G.  Richardson, 
m.d.,  of  Philadelphia,  Professor  of  Hygiene  in  the  University  of 
Pennsylvania. 

III.  The  Sit  aimer  and  Its  Diseases.  By  James  C.  Wilson,  m.d., 

of  Philadelphia,  Lecturer  on  Physical  Diagnosis  in  Jefferson 
Medical  College. 

IV.  Eyesight,  and    How  to  Care  for  It.     With  Illustrations. 

By  George  C.  Harlan,  m.d.,  of  Philadelphia,  Surgeon  to  the 
Wills  (Eye)  Hospital. 
V.  The  Throat  and  the  Toiee.      With  illustrations.     By  J. 
Solis  Cohen,  m.d.,  of  Philadelphia,  Lecturer  on  Diseases  of  the 
Throat  in  Jefferson  Medical  College,  etc. 

VI.  The  Winter  and  Its  Dangers.    By  Hamilton  Osgood,  m.d., 
of  Boston,  Editorial  Staff  Boston  Medical  and  Surgical  Journal. 

VII.  The  Mouth  :md  the  Teeth.     With  illustrations.    By  J.  W. 
White,  m.d.,   d.d.s.,    of   Philadelphia,    Editor    of   the    Dental 
Conmos.  ■ 
VIII.  Brain  Work    and  Overwork.     By  H.  C.  Wood,  Jr.,  m.d., 

of  Philadelphia,  Clinical  Professor  of  Nervous  Diseases   in  the 
University  of  Pennsylvania,  etc. 

IX.  Our  Homes.  With  illustrations.  By  Henry  Hartshorne, 
m.d.,  of  Philadelphia,  formerly  Professor  of  Hygiene  in  the 
University  of  Pennsylvania. 
X.  The  Skin  in  Health  and  Disease.  By  L.  D.  Bulkley, 
m.d.,  of  Now  York.  Physician  to  the  Skin  Department  of  the 
Demilt  Dispensary  and  of  the  New  York.Hospltal. 

Xf.  Sea  Air  and  Sea  Bathing.    By  John  H.Packard,  m.d.,  of 
Philadelphia,  Surgeon  to  the  Episcopal  Hospital. 

XII.  School  and  Industrial  Hygiene.  By  D.  F.  Lincoln,  m.d., 
of  Boston,  Mass.,  Chairman  Department  of  Health,  American 
Social  Science  Association. 

This  series  of  American  Health  Primers  is  prepared  to  diffuse  as  widely, 
and  cheaply  as  possible,  among  all  classes,  a  knowledge  of  the  elementary 
facts  of  Preventive  Medicine,  and  the  bearings  and  applications  of  the 
latest  and  best  researches  in  every  branch  of  Medical  and  Hygienic  Sci- 
ence. They  are  not  intended  (save  incidentally)  to  assist  in  curing  disease, 
but  to  teach  people  how  to  take  care  of  themselves,  their  children,  pupils, 
employes,  etc. 

They  are  written  from  an  American  standpoint,  with  especial  reference 
to  our  Climate,  Sanitary  Legislation  and  Modes  of  Life  ;  and  in  these  re- 
spects we  differ  materially  from  other  nations. 

The  subjects  selected  are  of  vital  and  practical  Importance  in  every-day 
life  and  are  treated  in  as  popular  a  style  as  is  consistent  with  their  nature. 
Each  volume,  if  the  subject  calls  for  it,  is  fully  illustrated,  so  that  the  text 


Select  List  of  Boohs. 


may  be  clearly  and  readily  understood  by  any  one  heretofore  entirely  ig- 
norant of  the  structure  and  functions  of  the  body.  The  object  being  -to 
furnish  the  general  or  unscientific  reader,  in  a  compact  form  and  at  a  low 
price,  reliable  guides  for  the  prevention  of  disease  and  the  preservation  of 
both  body  and  mind  in  a  healthy  state. 

The  authors  have  been  selected  with  great  care,  and  on  account  of  special 
fitness,  each  for  his  subject,  by  reason  of  its  previous  careful  study,  either 
privately  or  as  public  teachers. 

NOTICES  OF    THE  PRESS. 

"As  each  little  volume  of  this  series  has  reached  our  hands  we  have 
found  each  in  turn  practical  and  well-written." — New  York  School  Journal. 

"This  is  volume  No.  5  of  the  '  American  Health  Primers,' each  of  which 
The  Inter-Ocean  has  had  the  pleasure  to  commend.  In  their  practical 
teachings,  learning,  and  sound  sense,  these  volumes  are  worthy  of  all  the 
compliments  they  have  received.  They  teach  what  every  man  and  woman 
should  know,  and  yet  what  nine-tenths  of  the  intelligent  class  are  ignorant 
of.  or  at  best,  have  but  a  smattering  knowledge  of." — Chicago  Inter-Ocean. 

"The  series  of  American  Health  Primers,  edited  by  Dr.  Keen,  of  Phila- 
delphia, aud  published  by  Presley  Hlakiston,  deserves  hearty  commenda- 
tion. These  handbooks  of  practical  suggestion  are  prepared  by  men  whose 
professional  competence  is  beyond  question,  and,  for  the  most  part,  by 
those  who  have  made  the  subject  treated  the  specific  study  of  their  lives. 
Such  was  the  little  mauual  on  '  Hearing,'  compiled  by  a  well-known  aurist, 
and  we  now  have  a  companion  treatise,  in  Eyesight  and  How  to  Care  for  It, 
by  Dr.  George  C.  Harlan,  surgeon  to  the  Wills  Eye  Hospital.  The 
author  has  contrived  to  make  his  theme  intelligible  and  even  interesting 
to  the  young  by  a  judicious  avoidance  of  technical  language,  and  the 
occasional  introduction  of  historical  allusion.  His  simple  and  felicitous 
method  of  handling  a  difficult  subject  is  conspicuous  in  the  discussion 
of  the  diverse  optical  defects,  both  congenital  and  acquired,  and 
of  those  injuries  and  diseases  by  which  the  eyesight  may  be  impaired  or  lost. 
We  are  of  the  opinion  that  this  little  work  will  prove  of  special  utility  to 
parents  and  all  persons  intrusted  with  the  care  of  the  eyes." — New  York  Sun. 

"The  series  of  American  Health  Primers,  now  in  course  of  publication, 
is  presenting  a  large  body  of  sound  advice  on  various  subjects,  in  a  form 
which  is  at  once  attractive  and  serviceable.  The  several  writers  seem  to 
hit  the  happy  mean  between  the  too  technical  and  tne  too  popular.  They 
advise  in  a  general  way,  without  talking  in  such  a  manner  as  to  make  their 
readers  begin  to  feel  their  own  pulses,  or  to  tinker  their  bodies  without 
medical  advice ." — Sunday-school  Times. 

"Brain  Work  and  Overwork.  By  Dr.  H.  O.  Wood,  Clinical  Professor 
of  Nervous  diseases  in  the  University  of  Pennsylvania.  This  is  another 
volume  of  the  admirable  "  Health  Primers,"  published  by  Presley  Blakis- 
ton.  To  city  people  this  will  prove  the  most  valuable  work  of  the  series. 
It  gives,  in  a  condensed  and  practical  form,  just  that  information  which  is 
of  such  vital  importance  to  sedentary  men.  It  treats  the  whole  subject  of 
brain  work  and  overwork,  of  rest,  and  recreation,  and  exercise  in  a  plain 
and  practical  way,  and  yet  with  the  authority  of  thorough  and  scientific 
knowledge.  No  man  who  values  his  health  and  his  working  power  should 
fail  to  supply  himself  with  this  valuable  little  book."— State  Gazette,  Tren- 
ton, N.  J. 


6  Presley  Blakiston's 

ON  SLIGHT  AILMENTS.  Their  Nature  and  Treatment. 
By  Lionel  S.  Beale,  m.d.  Large  12mo.  Cloth.  Price  §1.75. 
Among  civilized  nations  a  perfectly  healthy  individual  seems  to  be  the 
exception  rather  than  the  rule  ;  almost  every  one  has  experienced  very  fre- 
quent departures,  of  one  kind  or  another,  from  the  healthy  state  ;  in  most 
instances  these  derangements  are  slight,  though  perhaps  showing  very 
grave  symptoms,  needing  a  plain  but  quick  remedy. 

CONDENSATION  OP  CONTENTS. 

The  Tongue  in  Health  and  Slight  Ailments,  Appetite,  Nausea,  Thirst, 
Hunger,  Indigestion,  its  Nature  and  Treatment,  Dyspepsia,  Constipation, 
and  its  Treatment,  Diarrhoea,  Vertigo,  Giddiness,  Biliousness,  Sick  Head- 
ache, Neuralgia,  Rheumatism,  on  the  Feverish  and  Inflammatory  State, 
the  Changes  in  Fever  and  Inflammation,  Common  Forms  of  Slight  Inflam- 
mation, Nervousness,  Wakefulness,  Restlessness,  etc.,  etc. 

OTHER  BOOKS  BY  DR.  LIONEL  S.  BEALE,  F.R.S.,  f.k.c.p. 

DISEASE  GERMS.  Their  Real  and  Supposed  Nature  and 
their  Destruction.  2d  edition,  117  illustrations.  12mo.  Cloth.  Price  $4.00. 

BIOPLASM.  A  Contribution  to  the  Physiology  of  Life.  Illus- 
trated.   12mo.    Cloth.    Price  $2.25. 

PROTOPLASM.  Or  Matter  and  Life.  3d  edition.  16  Colored 
Plates.    12mo.    Cloth.     Price  $3.00. 

THE  MICROSCOPE.  How  to  Work  with  It.  A  Complete 
Manual  of  Microscopical  Manipulation.  4<)0  Illustrations.  8vo.  Cloth. 
Price  $7.50. 

THE  MICROSCOPE  IN  PRACTICAL  MEDICINE.  With 
full  directions  for  examining,  preparing  and  injecting  objects,  the  vari- 
ous secretions,  etc.  By  Lionel  S.  Beale,  m.d.  4th  edition.  500  illus- 
trations.   8vo.    Cloth.    Price  $7.50. 

WATER  ANALYSIS  For  Sanitary  Purposes,  with  Hints  for 
the  Interpretation  of  Results.  By  E.  Frankland,  ph.d  ,  d.c.l.  Illus- 
trated.   12mo.    Cloth.    Price  $1.00. 

"  Mr.  Presley  Blakiston  has  reprinted  Dr.  E.  Frankland's  excellent 
little  manual  of  Water  Analysis  /or  Sanitary  Purposes,  which  in  the  com- 
pass of  150  pages  gives  clear  directions  for  the  best  methods  of  analysis,  and 
for  the  interpretation  of  the  results.  The  name  of  the  author  is  a  sufficient 
testimonial  to  its  accuracy  and  its  practical  value." — Boston  Journal  of 
Chemistry. 

BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 

HOW  TO  TEACH  CHEMISTRY.  Being  Six  Lectures  to 
Science  Teachers.    Illustrated.    12mo.    Cloth.    Price  $1.25. 

THE  ART  OF  PERFUMERY.  The  Methods  of  Obtaining 
the  Odors  of  Plants  and  Instruction  for  the  Manufacture  of  Perfumery, 
Dentifrices,  Soap,  etc.  etc.  By  G>.  W.  Septimus  Piesse.  4th  edition 
enlarged.    366  illustrations.    8vo.    Cloth.    Price  $5.5o. 


Select  List  of  Booh. 


WORKS  ON  HYGMENE,  CLIMATE,  ETC. 

SANITARY  EXAMINATION  OF  WATER,  AIR  AND 
Food.  By  Cornelius  B.  Fox,  m.  d.  94  engravings.  12mo.  Cloth. 
Price  $4  00. 

NUTRITION  IN  HEALTH  AND  DISEASE.  A  Contribu- 
tion to  Hygiene  and  Medicine.  3d  edition.  By  J.  Henry  Bennett,  m.d. 
8vo.    Cloth.    Price  $2.60. 

HYGIENE  AND  CLIMATE  in  the  Treatment  of  Consump- 
tion.   3d  edition.    By  J.  Henry  Bennett,  m.d.    8vo.    Cloth.   Price  S2.50. 

PRACTICAL  HYGIENE.  A  Complete  Manual  for  Army  and 
Civil  Medical  Officers,  Boards  of  Health,  Engineers  and  Sanitarians. 
5th  edition.  With  many  illustrations.  By  Ed.  A  Parkes,  m.d.  8vo. 
Cloth.    Price  $6.00. 

VOCAL  HYGIENE  AND  PHYSIOLOGY.  With  special 
reference  to  the  Cultivation  and  Preservation  of  the  Voice.  For 
Singers  and  Speakers.  With  engravings.  By  Gordon  Holmes,  m.d. 
12mo.    Cloth.    Price  $2.00. 

HEALTH  RESORTS  of  Europe,  Asia  and  Africa.  The  result 
of  the  Author's  own  observations  during  several  years  of  health  travel 
in  many  lands.    By  T.  M.  Madden,  m.d.    8vo.    Cloth.    Price  $2.50. 

THE'OCEAN  AS  A  HEALTH  RESORT.  A  Handbook  of 
Practical  Information  as  to  Sea  "Voyages.  For  the  Use  of  Invalids  and 
Tourists.  By  Wm.  S.  Wilson,  m.d.  Illustrated  by  a  chart  shewing 
the  ocean  routes  of  steamers,  and  the  physical  geography  of  the  sea. 
Svo.    Cloth.    Price  $2.50. 

DWELLING  HOUSES  and  Their  Relation  to  Health.  By  W. 
H.  Corfield.    12mo.    Cloth.     Preparing. 

WORKS  ON  MICROSCOPY. 

HOW  TO  WORK  WITH  THE  MICROSCOPE.  A  Com- 
plete Manual  of  Microscopical  Manipulation.  Containing  full  descrip- 
tions of  all  new  processes  of  investigation,  with  directions  for  examining 
objects  under  the  highest  powers,  and  for  photographing  microscopical 
objects.  By  Lionel  S.  Be.ile,  m.d.  5th  edition,  enlarged  and  containing 
over  400  illustrations,  many  being  colored.    8vo.    Cloth.    Price  $7.50. 

MICROSCOPIC  MOUNTING.  A  Complete  Manual,  with 
notes  on  the  collection  and  examination  of  objects.  By  Jno.  H.  Martin. 
2d  edition.    With  150  illustrations.    8vo.    Cloth.    Price  $2.75. 

SECTION  CUTTING.  A  Practical  Guide  to  the  Preparation 
and  Mounting  of  Sections  for  the  Microscope.  By  Sylvester  Marsh. 
Illustrated.    16mo.    Cloth.    Price  75  cents. 

EXAMINATION  OF  DRINKING  WATER  with  the  Micro- 
scope. By  J.  G-.  MacDonald,  m.d.  With  20  full-page  lithographic 
references,  tables,  etc.    Svo.    Cloth.    Price  $2.75. 


8  Presley  Blakiston's  Select  List. 


WORKS  ON  CHEMISTRY. 
CHEMISTRY,  INORGANIC    AND    ORGANIC.     With    Ex- 
periments and  a  Comparison  of  Equivalent  and  Molecular  Formulae. 
295  Engravings.    By  C.  L.  Bloxam.    4th  London  edition  revised.    8vo. 
Cloth.    Price  $4.00. 

NOTES  FOR  CHEMICAL  STUDENTS.  Compiled  from 
Fowne's  and  Other  Manuals.  By  Albert  J.  Bernays,  ph.d.  6th  edition. 
16mo.    Cloth.     Price  $1.25. 

MEDICAL     AND     PHARMACEUTICAL      CHEMISTRY. 

Synthetical,  Descriptive  and  Analytical.  2d  edition,  completely  rear- 
ranged and  revised.  By  John  Muter,  h.a.,  m.d.  Royal  8vo.  Cloth. 
Price  $6.00. 

HANDBOOK  OF  MODERN  CHEMISTRY,  Organic  and 
Inorganic.  By  C.  Meymott Tidy,  m.d.  8vo.  6!i0pages.  Cloth.   Price$5.»o. 

A  PRIMER  OF  CHEMISTRY.  Including  Analysis.  By 
Arthur  Vacher.    32mo.    Cloth.    Price  50  cents. 

COMMERCIAL  ORGANIC  ANALYSIS.  Being  a  Treatise 
on  the  Properties,  Proximate  Analytical  Examination,  and  Modes  of 
Assaying  the  various  Organic  Chemicals  and  Preparations  employed 
in  the  Arts,  Manufactures,  Medicine,  etc.;  with  Concise  Methods  for 
the  Detection  and  Determination  of  their  Impurities,  Adulterations, 
and  Products  of  Decomposition.  Vol.  i.— Cyanogen  Compounds,  Alco- 
hols and  their  Derivatives,  Phenols,    Acids,  etc.    8vo.    Cloth,    Price 

$3.50. 

MISCELLANEOUS, 

ON  HOSPITALS  AND  PAYING  WARDS  Throughout  the 
"World.  Facts  in  Support  of  a  Rearrangement  of  the  System  of  Medi- 
cal Relief.    By  Henry  C.  Burdett.    8vo.    Cloth.    Price  $2.25. 

COTTAGE  HOSPITALS;  Their  Origin,  Progress  and  Man- 
agement    2d  edition,  enlarged  and  illus.    By  Henry  C.  Burdett.    $4.5o 

HOSPITAL  NURSING.  A  Manual  for  all  engaged  in  Nursing 
the  Sick.    12mo.    Cloth.    Price  $1.00. 

DEFECTS  OF  SIGHT  AND  HEARING;  Their  Nature, 
Causes  and  Prevention.  By  T.  Wharton  Jones,  f.r.s.  2d  edition. 
12mo.    Cloth.    Price  50  cents. 

IMPERFECT  DIGESTION;  Its  Causes  and  Treatment.  By 
Arthur  Leared,  m.d.,  f.r.c.p.    6th  edition.    12mo.    Cloth.    Price  $1.50. 

SEA  AIR  AND  SEA  BATHING  ;  Their  Influence  on  Health. 
A  Guide  for  Visitors  at  the  Seaside.    By  Chas.  Parsons,  m.d.    18mo. 
Cloth.     Price  60  cents. 

COMPEND  OF  DOMESTIC  MEDICINE,  and  Companion  to 
the  Medicine  Chest.  By  Savory  and  Moore.  Illustrated.  12mo.  Cloth. 
Price  50  cents. 

THE  TRAINING  OF  NURSES.  Their  Efficient  Training 
for  Hospital  and  Private  Practice.  By  Wm.  Robert  Smith.  Illustrated 
12mo.    Cloth.    Price  $2.00. 


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